The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC/the Commission) has released its investigative report into wastewater infrastructure failures and the contamination of rivers, estuaries and coastal waters in selected areas of Kouga Local Municipality, Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality and Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality.

The investigation followed complaints, stakeholder representations and recurring public reports concerning sewage spills, failing wastewater infrastructure and risks to rivers and beaches. The Commission commissioned an accredited laboratory to conduct independent sampling, considered municipal monitoring data and oversight findings, inspected the available evidence and afforded affected municipalities an opportunity to comment on the provisional report.

The report found that some coastal sites, including Nahoon and Gonubie, reflected comparatively favourable microbiological conditions on the day of sampling. However, serious failures were identified elsewhere. West Bank produced the most severe result, recording E. coli of 616 000 per 100-millilitres and near-total oxygen depletion. Kouga’s own data showed that final effluent at the Jeffreys Bay and KwaNomzamo wastewater treatment works remained non-compliant, while New Brighton and Hobie beaches in Nelson Mandela Bay recorded materially elevated contamination on 16 March 2026.

Report by the Human Rights Commission