Chronicle Editor
Thupeyo Muleya, Beitbridge Bureau
BEITBRIDGE Municipality is working on rehabilitating 17 of its 32 boreholes to augment water supplies across the town and boost its capacity to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19).
The constant supply of water is one of the key components to maintenance of both personal and public hygiene.
The boreholes are expected to improve water supplies mostly in new suburbs where the local authority is delivering thousands of litres in bowsers weekly.
The town’s 70 000 residents require at least 18 mega liters of water daily and currently the city municipality meeting two thirds of the demand.
Acting town clerk, Mr Sathulani Moyo said yesterday that they were still engaging with a nongovernmental organisation, Christian Care which has expressed an interest to fund the project through a Unicef grant.
“To augment water supplies, the local authority drilled 32 boreholes across all the six wards a few years back and only 17 are not working,” he said.
“So, we have engaged Christian Care who have also helped us with Covid-19 resources to assist with the rehabilitation of the boreholes.
“We are very hopeful that the project will take off soon and be completed before the organisation leaves town. Most of the boreholes are solar powered and some need pumps replacements and other mechanical repairs. “In areas where there are inadequate water supplies, we have been delivering in 5000 litres tanks twice a week, especially in Ward 6 (Hlalani Kuhle suburbs), Ward 3 (Medium Density) and Ward 1 (Eastlea Suburbs).”
He said the council workers from the environmental health section was also working with line stakeholders in educating and enforcing national guidelines to combat the spread of Covid-19.
Mr Moyo encouraged residents to continue observing standard hygiene practices, social distancing and other lockdown guidelines.
The local authority, is also making frantic efforts to attend to sewer blockages as and when and also religiously collecting refuse as part of an aggressive solid waste management thrust.
It is also believed that water and sanitation issues improved in most parts of the country, especially rural areas after the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) started rehabilitating 969 boreholes.
According to Zinwa, the project targets to improve water security for rural communities in drought prone and water stressed regions.
The program also saw the water utility drilling 21 more boreholes in some areas.
Online Reporter