By Anna Ingwafa Windhoek Some residents of Goreangab and surrounding areas are reported to have illegally caught fish from Goreangab Dam over the weekend. The fish is not fit for human consumption. According to City of Windhoek policies, people are prohibited from catching fish from the dam because the water is toxic. Manager of Corporate Communications Ndangi Katoma said the ban on fishing in the Goreangab Dam is still on. She warned residents not to catch fish from the dam because it is not fit for human consumption. Those that New Era spoke to said they had been eating the fish and nothing had happened to them. Katoma said the city has placed a security officer to patrol only the recreation area. They will now put up an additional officer to monitor the dam and its surroundings and prevent people from catching fish in the dam. Katoma said the city has also put up signs that prohibits people from catching fish and swimming in the dam because it poses a hearth hazard. “Anyone who will be caught catching fish or swimming in the dam will be dealt with accordingly,” Katoma warned. The municipality issued a warning few years back to residents in nearby areas of the Goreangab Dam not to touch water or catch fish from the dam as a result of an environmental impact assessment on the aquatics of the dam after the city management noted some dead fish in the dam. An organism, Ecoli, basically found in human and animal faeces, was found in the fish. The study revealed that organic and inorganic pollutants heavily pollute the dam, and the fish had high content of organisms of these faecal origins that can be fatal if consumed.
2006-06-272024-04-23By Staff Reporter