Screens installed at Koeberg and Langa sewer pump stations to create resilient infrastructure
23 April 2023
Koeberg Road and Langa sewer pump stations have been fitted with new filtration screens to keep large items from making their way through the wastewater system. This is to help protect this vital infrastructure from damage and reduce the risk of sewer overflows to improve the lives of residents.
City of Cape Town officials and the City's Mayoral Committee Member for Water and Sanitation, Councillor Zahid Badroodien, visited the Langa Main Pump Station to see the progress being made on the installation of the new filtration screens at the facility. Koeberg Road Pump Station was fitted with these upgrades last year, with promising results already.
The screens, which cost R2,36 million between both pump stations, are designed to collect large materials in a two-part system and remove them to protect the pumps from premature failures by preventing problematic items from entering the systems and damaging the machinery.Pump stations were previously designed without screening facilities, because they only needed to withstand normal sewage streams.
'Over the years the environment and sewerage system have become more frequently used as dumping areas. Rubbish and foreign material can also find their way into the sewer as a result of acts of vandalism and abuse as well as illegal stormwater-to-sewer connections. The screens are therefore a necessity to protect the pumping equipment and the surrounding environment.
'These upgrades will reduce the breakdowns of the pumps. In reducing breakdowns, we can also reduce the cost to repair these pumps,' said Councillor Badroodien.
Currently the screens are being manually operated by City teams as a temporary solution until fully automated screens can be installed as part of planned upgrades.About Langa Main Pump Station
Langa Main Pump Station is the largest in Cape Town and services a great number of residents from various areas, including Epping, Goodwood, Pinelands and surrounding areas. Langa Minor has not been fitted with a screen yet.
'When the pump stations do not operate optimally and do not pump correctly, it causes a surcharge in the sewer lines which subsequently leads to overflows from manholes and outflows into residential areas and into other environmentally sensitive areas, posing health risks.
'This is a measure the City has taken to create resilient wastewater systems that will continue to serve its residents for the future. While the screens have been installed, residents also have a part to play to help prevent sewer overflows by not dumping waste illegally, be it on land or via our sewer network by what they are flushing or pouring down their sinks,' said Councillor Badroodien.
For tips on how to help reduce overflows, see www.capetown.gov.za/blocked-sewers.
Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office
