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In an ongoing inspection, the Environmental Management Agency (EMA) has fined a number of companies amounts of up to $1 000 for polluting the river.
The local authority has received the maximum spot fine of $5 000 a number of times in recent years, for failing to fix its sewer system, which discharges untreated human waste directly into the environment.
In the last two instances, the raw sewage finds its way into Umguza River through storm drains, thereby exposing villagers who use the water, to a number of diseases.
EMA’s provincial environmental manager for Bulawayo Mr Decent Ndlovu confirmed the latest fine yesterday.
“Yes, a second ticket for $5 000 was issued to the city council on Tuesday. It was for a particularly bad broken sewer pipe that discharges waste directly into Umguza River,” said Mr Ndlovu.
He said the city had been asked to fix the pipe a number of times in the last two years.
Mr Ndlovu said council was fined for contravening section 22 (1) of Statutory Instrument 6 of 2007 of the Environmental Management Act Chapter 20:27.
“The section prohibits the discharge of untreated solid waste into the environment. The city has been given seven days to pay the fine or risk prosecution.
“They are also supposed to come up with an action plan to fix all the problems that have been identified by the agency,” he said.
Efforts to get comments from the Town Clerk, Mr Middleton Nyoni last night, were unsuccessful.
Last week, EMA issued fines to a number of leather tanning companies in the Belmont industrial area, for releasing untreated toxic chemicals directly into the environment.
The Cold Storage Company (CSC), Belmont Leather and Prestige Leather were fined $500 each for illegal dumpsites while another tannery was fined $1 000 for deliberately channelling toxic effluent into the city’s storm drains.
The toxins reportedly end up in Umguza River, via the city’s storm drains, where they can cause cancer, skin disorders and a number of water-borne diseases to villagers who use it in Umguza District.
They also kill fish and other marine life.
Leading bakeries that include Lobels and Bakers Inn were issued with warnings in an ongoing monitoring exercise by the agency.
During a tour of environmental hot spots in the city last week, Mr Ndlovu said the toxins from the broken sewer pipes infected the Umguza water with faecal colliforms that have pathogens that can cause cholera, dysentery, bilharzia and typhoid.
He said the diseases could be communicated to people who drink the water downstream.
Mr Ndlovu said animal skins were treated with chromium 6, a highly toxic substance that can cause cancer, skin disorders and irritation or ulcers in the stomach and intestines.
The water in Umguza River had a black colour and a bad smell.
Mr Ndlovu said EMA would carry out workshops to teach companies how to dispose of waste while causing minimum damage to the environment.
He appealed to members of the public to report environmental crimes in Bulawayo to EMA at (09) 64705.
Mr Ndlovu said entities like BCC that had been warned a number of times risked being taken to court or appearing before the EMA board for stiffer sentences.
The City of Harare, Chitungwiza and Norton have appeared before the board after repeatedly flouting environmental law.
The Bulawayo City Council was threatened with prosecution by EMA in 2010 over a similar issue.
The city came up with an action plan that was not fully implemented.
Online Reporter