HARARE mayor Herbert Gomba on Thursday urged politicians to desist from settling residents on wetlands in return for political mileage.
Gomba made the remarks while advocating for equitable access to clean water through the protection of wetlands.
Speaking at the Wetlands Indaba at Town House, Gomba said wetlands were an integral part of the environment.
“Lake Chivero is now heavily polluted largely through human action. It should have been decommissioned a long time ago, but we are still using it because there is no other source of water. The problems of water in Harare also stem from the destruction of wetlands through construction and cultivation activities,” he said.
“Residents should stop settling on wetlands. I am also urging the politicians to desist from encouraging people to settle on wetlands. This is causing major problems at the lake which will result in less water for the city,” he added.
Gomba said wetlands were under threat from illegal housing programmes that were not sanctioned by the municipality.
HCC said Wetlands were a critical part of the environment as they acted as a reservoir of the underground water.
Furthermore, wetlands are said to hold and replenish water that is withdrawn through boreholes and wells.
Urban Environmental Planner, Percy Toriro said the city is not properly located to facilitate future growth, making a masterplan necessary.
“The most important thing in coming up with this masterplan is that the residents should have an input in it. It should be resident-oriented and not come from the council,” he said.
Ecologist, Rob Cunliffe said Harare was in ‘a real crisis’ due to the erratic water situation which had been worsened by the continued plunder of wetlands.
He said in light of the continued threat to the survival of wetlands (arising mainly from construction and urban agriculture), there was now an urgent need to classify wetlands as integral parts of Harare’s water infrastructure.
