Conflicting reports about the water quality and safety of Durban beaches have residents confused.
On Monday, water and wastewater treatment company Talbot released its weekly results that showed excessive amounts of E. coli bacteria at six of the city’s beaches along the beachfront promenade — Durban’s top tourist attraction — in samples taken last Thursday (September 14).
Talbot found that E. coli levels at the beaches ranged from six to 12 times more than the maximum acceptable level of 500cfu/100ml at both the south and north beaches.
However, eThekwini reported that 22 of their 23 beaches were open and safe for swimming, just a day after Talbot's tests had found otherwise.
Now the city has invited Talbot to conduct concurrent water samples after contradictory results from their respective water quality tests.
The city said this will ensure the results are verified and that there will be transparency in the municipality’s “stringent sampling and testing procedures”.
“To promote transparency and confidence in municipal procedures, the city has extended an invitation to Talbot to carry out concurrent sampling so that the water quality results are verified. This collaborative effort aims to address any discrepancies in results and to bolster the municipality’s credibility.”
DA councillor and eThekwini executive committee member Yogis Govender said the DA would ask the city manager to close the beaches mentioned in Talbot’s report.
The city said the announcement followed a report by Dr Musa Gumede, deputy city manager for community and emergency services, to the executive committee earlier in the day that their weekly results had found no poor beach water.
“The latest results from these tests indicate no poor water quality, demonstrating the municipality’s unwavering commitment to ensuring the safety of beachgoers.”
Gumede had stressed that Warner and Winklespruit beaches were temporarily closed only as a precaution because of the unusually high tides that were affecting the country’s coastal areas. The closures had nothing to do with the water quality, Gumede said.
The city and the lab testing facility entered into a partnership in December after numerous findings of unsafe water at Durban beaches.
Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda said at the time: “Most of the city’s beaches are open and safe for swimming after improved water quality results. To guarantee this, the city has partnered one of the reputable and independent laboratories, Talbot, to ensure that the quality of our water is constantly tested. We have agreed to compare and share our results publicly.”
When asked why this had fallen away, the city said: “Talbot has an open, standing invitation to sample together with us so that we can compare apples with apples. For reasons known only to them they prefer not to use this option. As a lab, they know well that results can only be comparable if we test together.”
Talbot didn't respond to queries.
Meanwhile, Kaunda expressed satisfaction, in the same executive committee meeting, with the speedy response to replacing old sewer pumps that service Warner and Winklespruit beaches after his recent oversight visit.
He did, however, criticise some residents and businesses “particularly certain food outlets who continue to improperly dispose of fats and foreign materials into the sewer system, leading to disruptive blockages which cause sewer overflows in some parts of the city”.
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