Sewage pollution, vandalism to keep Nelson Mandela Bay beach closed until summer

Daily Maverick

3 days ago

Six months down the line, New Brighton Beach in Nelson Mandela Bay is likely to remain closed until summer as the metro works to rectify sewage pollution and vandalism at the popular seaside facility.
In December 2024, the Nelson Mandela Bay metro closed New Brighton Beach due to dangerous levels of E.coli contamination after vandalism led to a sewage spill at the nearby Fishwater Flats Sewage works.
On Thursday, metro spokesperson Sithembiso Soyaya said the beach would be opened 'before the upcoming summer season'. However, he said that since the closure, beach facilities had been vandalised and the damage would be repaired only in the next financial year.
'The repairs to the Fishwater Flats Water Treatment Works are envisaged to conclude by the end of this month,' he said. Soyaya said the beach would be reopened once there were 'satisfactory results regarding E.coli levels'.
According to the Auditor-General's report into municipal finances for 2023/2024, Nelson Mandela Bay was the only metro that received a regional bulk infrastructure grant, which is aimed at improving bulk water and sanitation infrastructure.
The metro, however, underspent the grant by 41% due to two capital projects that were not launched because of 'implementation challenges', the report said.
In its budget for the 2025/2026 financial year, the metro said: 'The Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant (RBIG) has been allocated to the municipality only for the 2025/26 financial year to the amount of R390-million. This grant was firstly allocated to the city with effect from the 2023/24 [medium term], to deal with water drought-related issues that the city has been confronted with and will, with effect from the 2026/27 financial year, be no longer made available to the City.'
Cable theft
Final treated effluent is released from Fishwater Flats at two points: New Brighton Beach pier and Papenkuils River canal, but the theft of electrical cables that supplied power to the plant and essential equipment interrupted the treatment process of this effluent. In turn, this led to a massive spill of raw sewage into the sea.
It has been reported in municipal statements that R18.8-million has been spent to repair Fishwater Flats.
In October last year, Deputy Minister of Water and Sanitation Sello Seitlholo visited the facility.
He said the water treatment works had 'experienced major destruction to a cost of almost R5-million; the repair is estimated to cost four times that. This has heavily impacted the work being done, which in turn impacts the quality of water being treated and discharged.
'I am fundamentally concerned about the level of vandalism and theft that is happening here. The municipality is losing a couple of million due to theft, and to replace that, it costs them four times what is lost,' he said.
'Dysfunctionality'
The DA's mayoral candidate for Nelson Mandela Bay for the upcoming local government elections, Retief Odendaal, said the problem went further than Fishwater Flats.
'Wastewater treatment facilities in Nelson Mandela Bay continue to face serious challenges, exposing the complete dysfunctionality of the current ANC-led administration. Years of neglect and failure to maintain, upgrade, and protect critical sewerage infrastructure have led to persistent pollution of our waterways and coastline.
'While the municipality claims that pollution levels are now acceptable and plans to reopen the beach at the end of June, our inspection today indicates that this is highly unlikely,' he said.
The municipality did, however, indicate on Thursday that it would open the beach only 'before summer.'
'I have now written to the Minister of Water and Sanitation, Pemmy Majodina, urging her department to intervene directly in Nelson Mandela Bay and assist in bringing all wastewater treatment works up to the required standards,' Odendaal said.
Among the findings made against the municipality by the Auditor-General was that none of the wastewater treatment facilities has valid licences.
'Given the municipality's track record of failing to provide transparent and reliable water quality data, we have called on the minister's department to conduct its independent water quality testing at New Brighton Beach,' Odendaal said.
The municipality doesn't make water quality results public unless it receives a Promotion of Access to Information Act application.
'Dangerous contamination'
In March this year, ASC Consultants published an independent report showing that between November and December last year, the sea at New Brighton Beach was dangerously contaminated. According to the report, its results showed 'high contamination levels [that] posed significant health risks to beachgoers'.
This was on 2 November. Two weeks later, the numbers had come down, but were still high. In December, contamination shot up again. Analysts compiling the report for ASC warned that sewage pollution was now 'posing severe health risks to swimmers and require[s] immediate remedial action.'
A test after the beach was closed showed record-high contamination levels. Analysts issued another warning: 'This beach exhibited alarmingly high levels of contamination in the third trial… These figures exceed the Blue Flag standards by 40 and 92 times, respectively. Such extreme contamination levels suggest a direct influx of untreated sewage, likely exacerbated by an ageing infrastructure and stormwater runoff.
'The health risks here are severe, rendering the beach unsafe for recreational use. Community members who use this beach for spiritual purposes, as observed during one of the visits when samples were collected, are at significant risk of exposure to waterborne pathogens,' the report concluded.
Odendaal said the DA would do its own sampling.
'The problems are not limited to Fishwater Flats. Sewage spills, failing stormwater drains and dysfunctional wastewater facilities are widespread across the city. The municipality bears primary responsibility for this persistent pollution, and the people of Nelson Mandela Bay have a right to expect transparent reporting and urgent action,' he said. DM