Bulawayo City Council has warned residents over the consumption of vegetables watered using sewer water.
The Local Authority notes that sewer water contaminates vegetables with chemicals which in turn affect intellectual capacity development of children.
Speaking to women at a stakeholder engagement meeting organised by Women’s Coalition of Zimbabwe (WCoZ), council’s senior environment officer, Nkanyiso Ndlovu, said:
Sewer contains a lot of chemicals, we found traces of oestrogen, pesticide and other industrial chemicals.
The survey was conducted in 2012, it was meant to cover a period of five years. In that survey it was found that traces of lead, which we found on top of vegetable leaf surfaces stunts the intellectual development of children that affects their academic potential.
Studies have revealed that lead exceeding the maximum permissible limits in children’s bodies can affect the intellectual development, cause skin rash, stomach problems and ulcers, respiratory problems, weakened immune system, kidney and liver damage and lung cancer.
The Council’s 2012 survey noted that 97% of choumoellier samples exceeded the World Health Organisation/Food and Agriculture Organisation maximum levels of cadmium and 40% of the samples exceeded that of lead. The highest concentration of lead was 17,86mg/kg in choumoellier.
More: The Standard
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