The municipal manager of Lekwa Municipality, Mr JM Mokgatsi, gave information on Thursday, July 29 about attempts to address sewage spillages.
“This is caused by blockages of the sewer network due to the flushing of foreign materials in toilets and dumping waste in manholes,” Mr Mokgatsi said.
According to him, the dumping originates from households, some commercial as well as industrial properties.
These foreign materials restrict the flow of sewage down the drains, causing a build-up of stagnant effluent that eventually blocks the flow of sewage in the pipelines.
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Blockages cause the spillages into unintended areas, even into some households and others also eventually finding its way into the river. Mr Mokgatsi also said municipal infrastructure is damaged and an environmental hazard is created, posing a threat to human health and to other communities further downstream,
Altogether three programmes will be implemented, a honey sucker will be deployed, a vacuum truck will be hired and bylaws will be invoked against identified offenders discharging such damaging refuse into the network.
Lekwa called on residents to join the war against dumping foreign objects into the sanitation system.
Residents are encouraged to report blocked sewage lines, missing manhole covers and any unlawful activities such as disposing of foreign objects into manholes to 017 712 5551/5458.
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