Ruwa Local Board Fined $51,000 for Discharging Raw Sewage into River
The Environmental Management Agency (EMA) has fined the Ruwa Local Board $51,000 for the repeated discharge of raw effluent into the Ruwa River.
This fine comes after the local authority was issued several non-compliance tickets by EMA for the illegal dumping of untreated sewage into the river.
According to the latest report from the Auditor General’s office, the Ruwa Local Board has been disposing of raw effluent into the Ruwa River due to a number of infrastructure issues. These include blockages along the sewer network, pump breakdowns, old pipes, and problems with the design of the local sewage treatment plant.
“The (Ruwa Local) Board has been disposing raw effluent into Ruwa River and experiencing blockages along the sewer network. This was attributed to an erratic power supply, a pump breakdown, old pipes and the design of the sewer plant,” the Auditor General’s report stated.
EMA’s Mashonaland East provincial spokesperson, Astas Mabwe, said the local authority needs to take urgent action to replace the aging infrastructure in order to prevent further pollution incidents.
“The Board should replace the old pipes and find alternative sources of power supply to avoid outbreak of diseases. The Ruwa Local Board sewage system stopped working and there is no sewage system to talk about. We have issued them with tickets before but there is no change,” Mabwe explained.
Environmental experts have expressed that strong enforcement is necessary to compel local governments to prioritize the maintenance and upgrading of critical sanitation infrastructure.
With the Ruwa River being an important source of water for surrounding communities, the discharge of untreated sewage poses serious health and environmental risks that must be addressed urgently by the local council.
