WATER testing has never been more imperative in the City as constant sewage spills have resulted in compromised drinking-water quality and beach closures.
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WaterCAN, an initiative of the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA), is working together with eco-warriors, organisations and communities to hopefully put an end to sewage spills and to achieve acceptable drinking-water quality again. Its aim is to collect enough data, through independent water testing, to take on the relevant authorities.
Jonathan Erasmus, KZN representative of WaterCAN, spoke to Northglen News ahead of Water Testing Week about the importance of water testing. Water Testing Week runs from September 17 to 24.
“WaterCAN is a growing network of citizen science activists who are committed water guardians and willing stewards advocating for clean, safe and sustainable water,” he said.
“Anyone can be a water tester by purchasing a water testing kit. Kits are provided at no cost to qualifying communities on a case-by-case basis. The results are captured on the WaterCAN website and recorded so Outa can present them to the authorities so that action can be taken to repair sewer leaks and restore the health of rivers and beaches,” he said.
Water from any source can be tested, and WaterCAN is calling on all citizens to become testers.
Erasmus said that in February this year, E. coli results in the Umbilo River were critical and to date, remain unchanged.
Outa and Adopt-a-River, an NGO that takes care of rivers and beaches at Blue Lagoon and areas farther north, wrote to the National Department of Water and Sanitation, led by Minister Senzo Mchunu, asking them to inspect, repair, upgrade and maintain the Umbilo River Wastewater Treatment Works.
“The letter was acknowledged, however, we haven’t received a response yet. We are expecting a response soon. This is why we need more citizens to test water as these independent results can be presented to the necessary departments,” he said.
Anyone can order a kit through the website, www.watercan.org.za.
Some communities may be able to obtain kits at no cost by emailing info@watercan.co.za.
“The ideal would be to test where you are unless you have a specific interest in a particular water source.
“All data is uploaded onto the web-based app and is geo-tagged for location. The results are available to the public to view at any time,” he said.
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