City of Cape Town warms up for the summer as more people are out and about spaces such as the beaches become a hive of activity. The Water and Sanitation Directorate of the City of Cape Town is calling on residents and visitors to ensure a hassle-free beach experience for everyone by putting their waste in the correct place.
Not disposing of the items properly like wet wipes, cooking oil and sanitary products can cause blockages in sewer systems which leads to spills that could affect beach areas. Illegal dumping into the stormwater drains and waterways can cause foul odours near beaches that can be detracted from one’s beach experience.
There are some essential things that people of City of Cape Town can do:
- While using the toilet, only flush toilet paper and human waste, nothing else.
- Dispose of cooking oil and food scraps in the trash but not down the sink.
- People should bin it and not block it. Solid waste must go in the bin and not the toilet or drain.
- City people should encourage friends and neighbours to dispose of waste responsibly.
- Residents can report about illegal dumping to the City of Cape Town’s hotline.
City of Cape Town is committed to ensure a safe and enjoyable festive season for communities and beachgoers through a range of proactive measures:
- Daily inspections are done at all coastal pump stations to ensure that wet wells are thoroughly cleaned and cleared. Stand by teams are on hand and will respond promptly to after-hours emergencies.
- Proactive sewer cleaning was seen 111.5 km of sewer lines cleaned since July 2024. A dedicated spill mitigation team is on standby to respond quickly to emergencies.
- Several inspections on grease-trap were done at restaurants in Camps Bay, at Century City, Koeberg Road (Milnerton), Kalk Bay as well as Muizenberg and other areas to prevent clogs in the sewer system.
- Much resources are available to ensure that the necessary actions are carried out. Adequate Fleet, personnel and equipment will be available throughout the festive season to ensure that there are no resource constraints which will attend the required proactive and reactive work which needs to be carried out.
- The new Pump Station Control Room of the City of Cape Town tracks digitally the live performance of water and sanitation infrastructure that comprised of sewer pump stations.
- Cape Town also launched a digital hub for live tracking of water and sanitation infrastructure performance.
Member of the Mayoral Committee for Water and Sanitation – Councillor Zahid Badroodien said that throughout the year, this festive season, the City of Cape Town residents, businesses and visitors all need to team up to help reduce the chances of sewer overflows.
The Water and Sanitation Directorate of City of Cape Town works 365 days without any leave or holiday to monitor and rehabilitate ageing infrastructure and address emergencies promptly.
For Councillor Zahid Badroodien, such significant proactive investments in sewer pipe replacements, also the stormwater filtration, wastewater treatment and education campaigns are going on.