City of Cape Town invites public to engage on coastal water discharge

Residents are being urged to have their say on how treated effluent is managed along Cape Town’s coastline.

A forum is taking place today (Friday) at Council Chambers at the Civic Centre in the CBD.

Concerns around coastal water quality are of significant public interest, particularly in Camps Bay, Hout Bay, and Green Point, where treated wastewater is discharged into the ocean.

To address the concerns, the City of Cape Town is hosting the Permit Advisory Forum, aimed at improving transparency and allowing the public to engage directly with officials and experts.

"We rely on clean coastal water on all of our beaches for residents and tourists," explains Councillor Zahid Badroodien, Mayoral Committee Member for Water and Sanitation at the City.

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He explains that the forum gives locals the chance to put their concerns and questions to specialised consultants and provides an opportunity for discussion.

"It allows water specialists, residents and councillors to sit around a table and evaluate the data to ensure people have a full understanding of what's actually happening and what the data tells us about our beaches and coastline and the impact of sewage on them."

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Last month, the City issued a strong response to claims that sewage pollution is damaging large parts of its coastline.

It said that publicly available data does not support allegations of widespread or persistent contamination.

While acknowledging that pollution exists in any large city, the City’s Manager of Coastal Management, Gregg Oelofse, cautioned against equating visible waste or isolated incidents with ecological collapse.

For more information, listen to Badroodien using the audio player below: