Cape Town’s long-running controversy over marine outfall sewage discharge has escalated once again, with ActionSA formally challenging the City of Cape Town’s practices while the municipality defends its compliance and planned upgrades, reports Cape {town} Etc.
On Monday, ActionSA made appeal submissions to an independent appeals panel established by the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE), arguing that the City has repeatedly breached its licensing conditions for the discharge of wastewater into the Atlantic Ocean.
Leading the charge, ActionSA National Chairperson Michael Beaumont alleged that Cape Town’s historic system of marine outfall pipelines – located at Camps Bay, Green Point and Hout Bay – has been used to pump vast quantities of raw, untreated or only screened sewage into the sea.
According to ActionSA, since lodging its appeal two years ago, ‘over 19 billion litres of raw, untreated sewage have gone out into the oceans in the City of Cape Town’.
ActionSA further claims that the City has exceeded permissible discharge limits – especially at the Hout Bay outfall – on numerous occasions, in breach of environmental licences. A separate background report notes that Cape Town’s marine sewage infrastructure can discharge tens of millions of litres of sewage daily; at the Green Point outfall alone, the historic design is reported to allow about 40 million litres per day.
The political party argues the practice poses significant risks to marine ecosystems and public health, particularly as popular beaches such as Camps Bay and Clifton attract thousands of visitors during the summer months. Environmental groups and residents have expressed concern about pollution warnings and floating sewage matter reaching shorelines, raising fears about contamination and beach closures, reported News24.
ActionSA has also lodged criminal charges in relation to the matter and asserts that modern wastewater treatment solutions are both necessary and achievable to safeguard coastal waters and long-term tourism viability.
Meanwhile, the City of Cape Town has firmly rejected ActionSA’s characterisation of its sewage management. City’s MMC for Water and Sanitation Zahid Badroodien said officials believe the municipality has adhered to existing permit conditions, and stressed that only a relatively small portion of wastewater is discharged via the marine outfalls, with the vast majority treated at land-based facilities
‘The water being measured is clearly in line with the original licence parameters,’ Badroodien told reporters, noting that environmental experts have supported the view that current monitoring indicates compliance. He also said the DFFE is reviewing the City’s outfall permits as part of the appeals process.
The municipality has said it is investing in technology to address emerging contaminants, including pharmaceuticals and household chemicals, and has allocated roughly R200 million this year for marine outfall upgrades to improve infrastructure and screening mechanisms. Plans for significant improvements at several wastewater treatment plants across the metro, such as Potsdam and Zandvliet, have also been publicised by City officials.
The sewage saga dates back more than two years, with ActionSA appealing the original licensing decisions that allow sewage discharge. Historically, marine outfalls have been defended by engineering assumptions that deep-sea dispersal and ocean dilution mitigate environmental harm, but critics argue that modern pollutants and volumes far exceed what early designs contemplated.
Environmental monitoring reports and civil society groups have long questioned the adequacy of water quality testing, noting that sampling frequencies may not capture episodic contamination and that chemicals can accumulate in marine ecosystems.
As the independent appeals panel deliberates, both sides are gearing up for further legal and regulatory scrutiny, while residents, environmental advocates and coastal businesses watch closely amid concerns about health, ecological integrity and Cape Town’s reputation as a global tourism destination.
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Picture: ActionSA
