Greenpeace volunteers demand end to ecocide of uMbilo River

VOLUNTEERS from Greenpeace Africa are working with the uMbilo River Watch community group and concerned citizens to expose the severity of the pollution in uMbilo River.

The groups are urging residents to sign an online petition to address this issue.

“The uMbilo river system is in a shocking state,” said Delwyn Pillay, volunteer with Greenpeace Africa.

“Residents wake up not knowing what colour the river will be, not to mention the stench from the river which greets residents coming back home from work. Some residents have become accustomed to it.”

Years of unchecked pollution have turned the river an unnatural colour and killed off any animal species living in it.

To bring the ‘ecocide’ of the uMbilo River to the public’s attention, the groups have together started a petition on VUMA.

EARTH, addressed to various government bodies including the Durban Mayor, the Department of Water and Sanitation, the Minister of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation, and the South African Human Rights Commission.

Over the weekend, almost 1,000 people signed the petition.

Demands outlined by the groups in the petition include a management plan of the river system with monthly sampling at multiple point sources along the course of the river to determining which industries are responsible for contamination (a comprehensive test for all types of industrial effluents and sewage waste), that management reports be made public, the implementation of the National Eutrophication Monitoring Programme, which assesses trophic status, risks and trends of single impoundments, river reaches or canals, the implementation of the National Water and Sanitation Master Plan (NWSMP) to identify and prosecute polluters across the country, implementation of the River Eco-status Monitoring Programme (REMP) and monitoring of compliance with water-use licences.

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“The pollution affects communities and the natural habitat of local wildlife before entering the Durban Bay Harbour – one of the larger estuaries in South Africa of conservation importance.”

The petition run by Greenpeace Africa’s Durban volunteers and the uMbilo River Watch community group is calling for greater accountability from the municipality which will serve to protect natural treasures such as uMbilo River.

The petition can be viewed online at: https://www.vuma.earth/petitions/stop-the-ecocide-of-the-umbilo-river

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