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Thupeyo Muleya, Beitbridge Bureau
Authorities at the Beitbridge Municipality have started working on addressing sewer reticulation challenges which had become a cause for concern around the town during the last three months.
Dulivhadzimu, Tshitaudze (Alpha and Two rooms area) and Khwalu 1 (Shule Shule area) among others have been the hardest hit by sewage challenges.
In some of the suburbs sewage is flowing freely onto the streets, resulting is residents raising alarm over possible outbreak of diseases such as cholera, typhoid and dysentery.
Beitbridge town clerk Mr Loud Ramakgapola said a team was already on the ground attending to challenges in all the known hotspots.
“Our team is on the ground fixing the sewage problems. We expect to have covered a lot of ground by the end of the week,” said Mr Ramakgapola.
A few years ago the local authority was taken to court by the Environmental Management Agency (EMA) charged for contravening sections 57, 60 and 70 of the Environmental Management Act, for failing to attend to an increase in sewer bursts in most western suburbs.
However, the municipality announced recently that it intends to upgrade its sewer reticulation infrastructure to meet the projected growth of the town.
The border town got a boost when the Government constructed a modern sewer oxidation dam under the US$300 million border upgrade project, being undertaken by the Government and its partner, Zimborders Consortium.
The sewer oxidation dam, a 1,4-water reservoir, an animal plant and quarantine centre, 220 housing units for civil servants and a fire station are major projects meant to improve service delivery.
Prior to the latest development, the local authority had been struggling to address water and sewer reticulation challenges.
Online Reporter
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