Residents and business owners near Colombo’s iconic Beira Lake have raised alarm over an overwhelming stench emanating from the polluted water body, claiming it has created a crisis for hotels and hospitality establishments in the vicinity.
Some businesses have been forced to shut down, while residents say the foul odour is so intense that living in their own homes has become unbearable.
According to locals, large-scale discharge of wastewater and solid waste, including sewage and plastic debris, continues unabated into the lake from various parts of the city.
They allege that not only is untreated effluent being dumped into the lake, but polythene, plastic, and other non-degradable waste are also being carelessly discarded into its waters.
Meanwhile, Chathura Kahandawaarachchi, Chairman of the Western Province Waste Management Authority and Head of the newly appointed Task Force to Clean Beira Lake — established by the Western Province Governor — stated that a multi-phase clean-up plan has already been set in motion.
He said the strategy involves short-term, medium-term, and long-term interventions. Under the short-term plan, measures have been introduced to prevent further discharge of untreated waste into the lake.
Furthermore, electronic waste-collecting boats are now being deployed to remove floating debris.
Kahandawaarachchi also revealed that waste and sewage currently flowing into the lake through eight major canals will be diverted via the Colombo Municipal Council’s wastewater pumping station, with the intention of ultimately discharging it into the sea off Wellawatte, thus bypassing the lake.
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