A group of academicians from Makerere University and University of Bergen, Norway have added their voice, based on scientific evidence, to the already known fact that tap water in Kampala is unsafe for drinking and predisposes the population to the risk of cancer and other water borne diseases.
This is an addition to numerous studies and reports, including the government-commissioned Water and Sanitation Sector Performance Report 2008. The government report also found that tap water in Kampala was contaminated. There has been public outcry, especially by communities around the lake that the water is sometimes smelly at landing sites, and has high algae content.
The latest research by the universities warns that disposal of untreated waste pollutes Lake Victoria. The government report is a comprehensive study on achievements and challenges in provision of water and sanitation facilities in the country for policy interventions. It indicates that National Water and Sewerage Corporation uses Aluminum Sulphate (alum) to purify the water, but the chemical is no longer effective. The report recommends the use of high dosages of alum, but warns that the water will become acidic and toxic.
But apart from the scientific evidence, the preservation of Lake Victoria and the safety of water is everyone's responsibility. In many communities, especially in slums, where sanitary conditions are poor, people tend to use polythene bags and carelessly dispose faecal matter that sometimes finds its way in the Nakivubo Channel, leading into the lake. This is in addition to industries and garages, without any standards and monitoring, disposing off high concentrations of toxins in the lake.
There is need to cause a massive sanitation campaign on the need to protect the lake and ecosystems around it as a major step to human survival. Local governments should adhere to laws to protect the channel.
But it is also important that all industries, including those claiming to have international standards and UNBS standards of waste purification, be monitored for safe waste disposal.
The lake is a common good, and if all of us saw it as a household item, it would become easier to protect it.
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Proper sanitation is not new technology. Most of what it requires is labor and concrete. It is an excellent way to satisfy some of your fuel needs, too. Biogas is a traditional by-product of sewage treatment. It can be done on many scales, from single house to whole cities. Properly constructed, it can be used to dispose of agricultural wastes, too. It can process the aquatic weeds that are the other problem in your waterways. A clean environment is an important form of wealth. You can generate wealth getting there.
Cleaning your waterways of filth and weeds will do you more good than oil revenues ever will. You can even use some of the weeds to remove some of the toxins that get into your drinking water. Taking care of your wastes is a profitable way to improve your health and make your lives more pleasant.