Sewage dumped illegally in drains

Dubai: A voluntary scout around Dubai led a sailing club manager to what he believes is the source of illegal sewage dumping, causing havoc and water pollution at the Dubai Offshore Sailing Club.

A sewage tank truck was seen stopping over an unlocked storm water drain in Al Quoz on Saturday by Keith Mutch, manager of Dubai Offshore Sailing Club who took matters into his own hands to find the source of the sewage which has put a stop to swimming and sailing at the club.

Swimmers continued to bathe along Dubai's coastline however despite the reported raw sewage in the area as authorities have issued no health warnings.

The Dubai Offshore Sailing Club (DOSC) first raised the alarm last week when a storm drain located near the harbour's exit discharged sewage into the sea.

Mohammad Abdul Rahman Hassan, head of Dubai Municipality's marine environment protection department said they were aware of sewage being illegally dumped into the drainage system.

"We are trying to catch the culprits; this has been going for several months," he told Gulf News. "There are so many illegal connections to the drains. It is not only sewage, but oil and trash."

No health warnings

He added that he was not aware of any health warnings issued to stop swimmers on the beaches around the Jumeirah or Umm Suqueim area.

Tides spread the sewage inside the club's harbour and around the beaches. Water and beach sampling tests carried out in several locations near the club by management showed E.Coli and faeces. Yesterday at 1.30pm the storm drain was reopened and sewage was again pumped into the DOSC harbour.

Mutch told Gulf News how he drove to Al Quoz and followed a sewage tanker to see where it was heading.

"He soon pulled up on the sand next to the road and a guy jumped out and got under the trailer...I think the driver saw me because he took off really quickly. I drove up to the place he stopped and as you can see in the photos, he had stopped above a storm water manhole," said Mutch.

"The interesting thing is that the manhole has got a cloth jammed into it so it does not close and is therefore easy to open," he said.

Sewage tank drivers have to wait for up to 12 hours to unload their tanks at the Al Aweer sewage treatment plant due to long queues and the plant running close to 100 per cent over capacity.

Some drivers prefer to dump their tanks' contents in storm drains around the city which allows them to do several 'drops' a day.

How have you been affected by the sewage dump at the beach? Have you witnessed any trucks doing the same? Did you report this to the concerned authorities?