THE organisers of the Dusi Canoe Marathon say the recent closure of the uMngeni River Estuary and Blue Lagoon non-bathing beach will not affect the finish of the three-day race on February 22.

On the third day of the iconic race, paddlers cross the finish line at Blue Lagoon less than a kilometre from where a ban on recreational activity and fishing has been enforced.

Last month the eThekwini Municipality banned recreational and fishing activities from the uMngeni Estuary to the Blue Lagoon non-bathing beach following the discovery of ‘sewage effluent’ in the estuary.

The decision to ban fishing was in accordance with a Coastal Compliance Notice issued by the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment.

Last week anglers affected by the closure said they planned to defy the ban which they called ‘unfair’.

A little over 350 paddlers are expected to cross the finish line at Blue Lagoon, however, the high levels of E.coli (sewage bacteria) in the uMngeni River has raised alarm bells for environmentalists.

Water quality tests, both by the City and an independent laboratory, Talbot, have repeatedly shown extremely high levels of E.coli in the water.

Doug Gow, organiser of this year’s Dusi Canoe Marathon, said events such as the iconic race bring awareness to the state of polluted rivers.

“As organisers we are very away of the pollution not just in the uMngeni River, but the Msunduzi River as well. The E.coli levels in the river are an issue but we take precautions where it’s necessary for the safety of the paddlers. Events like the Dusi bring awareness to a serious problem like river pollution, which is not just a problem in South Africa but worldwide. The health and well-being of the Dusi paddlers is critical in our decision-making process,” Gow said.

This is also one of the reasons why the start of the Dusi has been moved to the Bishopstowe Country Club for a second year in a row from its traditional start at Campsdrift.

Addressing questions on the Dusi finsih, Gow said the race would go ahead as planned.

“With that said, the Dusi is going ahead and will finish at Blue Lagoon on Saturday, February 22. I do have sympathy and feel for the anglers affected by the ban. The sooner the pollution problem is addressed the better. For anglers to lose out on a primary source of income and joy is horrible,” he said.

While the City has now undertaken several clean-up operations to address sewage effluent flowing into the river, concerns around E.coli levels, especially at the Northern Wastewater Treatment Works (NWWTW) outfall pipe remain.

The pipe pumps out treated effluent from the Northern Wastewater Treatment Works which suffered extensive damage during the floods in 2022.

Currently a project to repair and restore the treatment works is underway at a cost of R500 million.

The project is expected to be completed in 2027.

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