daniel chigunweTafara Chibanda
HARARE Mayor Jacob Mafume has urged immediate and collaborative action to address the ecological crisis at Lake Chivero, as pollution levels continue to threaten both human health and aquatic life.
Addressing the media at a press conference in Harare yesterday, Mafume stressed the urgent need for investment in upgrading Harare’s outdated sewer and water treatment systems, as well as controlling unregulated settlements around critical water bodies.
He warned that failure to act decisively would worsen the city’s water supply challenges and increase the costs of water treatment for residents.
“Lake Chivero was designed in the 1950s to serve 500,000 people, today it supplies over 2 million residents in Harare and surrounding areas, the infrastructure cannot cope.
“This crisis demands immediate attention from all stakeholders, including the government, local authorities, and residents,” he said.
He said Harare’s current sewer systems, built decades ago, are being overwhelmed by rapid urban growth, and untreated effluent and industrial waste flowing into Lake Chivero remain major contributors to pollution.
“We need resources to expand and modernise these systems as of yesterday,” he said.
Mafume said he was concerned with the rise of unregulated settlements near Lake Chivero, which lack proper sanitation facilities.
“These settlements discharge waste directly into the lake, exacerbating pollution.
“There are over 50,000 informal settlements, this has to stop, we must regulate and relocate residents to formal areas,” he said.
He also called for stricter enforcement of environmental laws by the Environmental Management Agency (EMA), Harare City Council and the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA).
“We need to identify and stop pollutants, including industrial chemicals entering our water bodies,” he said.
While Lake Manyame supplements Lake Chivero, Mafume noted the need for new dams and pipelines to address Harare’s growing water demand.
“Projects such as Kunji Dam, Muda Dam, and the Chekeranwa pipeline must be fast-tracked.
“Harare has entered a Memorandum of Understanding to adopt chlorine dioxide for water treatment.
“We are currently using 11 chemicals to treat Lake Chivero water, more pollution means more chemicals and higher costs for residents.
“We are engaging experts, scientists and Government officials to conduct tests on the lake and identify solutions, this crisis cannot be resolved without collective effort.
“We owe a duty of care to creatures that cannot speak for themselves, animals like rhinos, which survived extinction, should not die because of our actions,” he said.
