The Institute for Water and Wastewater Technology (IWWT) at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) conducted water quality tests at some of Durban’s popular beach destinations on Thursday, 21 September 2023.

The results from the six beaches under evaluation were alarming, with one beach (Glenashley) showing poor levels of E.coli in the water that was sampled and the other five beaches were even more concerning.

Professor Faizal Bux, Director of the Institute for Water and Wastewater Technology at DUT, confirmed that five beaches, Addington, Bay of Plenty, Virginia, Umhlanga and Laguna had critical levels of Escherichia coli (E.coli) in the water. “The situation at these five beaches is much more serious, with the water quality being rated as ‘Critical’ and the advice from the scientists at the IWWT is that these beaches should not be used for recreational purposes, until the E.coli levels drop to acceptable standards,” advised Profssor Bux.

The map and table below shows the location of the beaches that were part of the IWWT water quality tests and provides a table of the water quality interpretation.

The independent water quality tests are conducted by the Institute for Water and Wastewater Technology at DUT in the interest of public safety. The IWWT releases the results in the public interest.

Pictured: A seawater picture. (Pexels-Sebastian-Voortman).

Simangele Zuma