Dar water treatment system in deep crisis

What you need to know:

National Environment Management Council officials have admitted that the situation whereby only one such facility is currently operational was alarming. The council says it has already contacted Dar es Salaam Water and Sewerage Corporation (Dawasco) over the crisis.

Dar es Salaam.  About 5 million city residents are at risk of contracting water -borne diseases unless immediate measures are taken to rehabilitate water treatment ponds.

National Environment Management Council (Nemc) officials have admitted that the situation whereby only one such facility is currently operational was alarming. The council says it has already contacted Dar es Salaam Water and Sewerage Corporation (Dawasco) over the crisis.

From interviews with various stakeholders including drivers of cesspit emptying trucks, The Citizen on Sunday established it is only the Kurasini water treatment facility that was operational.

The city has four other ponds located in Mikocheni, Mabibo, Buguruni and Vingunguti that are currently out of service.

Two other treatment ponds located at Ukonga Prison and Lugalo barracks but The Citizen on Sunday did not establish whether the facilities were also at the disposal of civilians or they were specifically for the armed forces.

Due to the acute shortage of the services, Dar es Salaam residents rely on facilities located as far as Kibaha Maili Moja in the neighbouring Coast Region to empty cesspit tanks.

Mr Ibrahimu Luvanga and Mr Masoud Issa, drivers of septic tank emptying trucks stationed at the Sayansi bus stop at Kijitonyama suburbs said they were forced to increase their fees as the nearby facilities had closed down.

“We are now forced to cover longer distances to Kurasini and Kibaha to empty our trucks,” said Mr Luvanga.

The two drivers warned that increased costs might be a small price people are now paying compared to what the city stands to lose if outbreaks of water borne diseases occurs.

Detaling the costs, the drivers said they charge Sh60,000  per trip for a mini-truck and fees can go up to Sh300,000 depending on the size of the truck and location of the treatment pond.

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