Blue Flag beaches remain scarce along eThekwini's coastline
Durban's city manager pulled the city out of Blue Flag in 2008 after auditors found evidence of growing sewage-pollution levels in sea water, which disqualified several beaches
Ten years after Durban’s ill-fated decision to pull out of the international Blue Flag beach-quality system because of rising sea-sewage pollution‚ the city has managed to regain only a handful of the flags it once flew on local beaches. More than 60 Blue Flags were awarded to beaches‚ marinas and tour boats along the South African coastline at a ceremony on Friday. Nearly half the flags went to the Western Cape‚ with eThekwini municipality managing to claim only two full flags and two pilot-status flags‚ compared with the 10 flags that once flew along Durban’s Golden Mile and other city beaches. Durban was the first South African city to implement the international programme. However‚ Mike Sutcliffe‚ the controversial former city manager‚ pulled the city out of Blue Flag in 2008 after auditors found evidence of growing sewage-pollution levels in sea water that disqualified several beaches from flying flags to certify compliance with strict water-quality tests and other criteria. In...
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