HomeBhekisisa TVHealth Beat #10 | What SA’s dirty water does to your health

Health Beat #10 | What SA’s dirty water does to your health

  • A broken sewerage system in Bophelong near the Vaal River in Gauteng, forces people to live “like pigs”, says environmental activist Lawrence Majoro.
  • The department of water and sanitation acknowledges the Vaal is “one of the worst polluted rivers in South Africa”, leaving residents anxious about diseases like cholera.
  • In this episode of our monthly television show, Health Beat, we take you to see the Emfuleni municipality in Vanderbijlpark’s rundown sewers. Mia Malan speaks to an infectious diseases expert and a water scientist to find out how bad things can get if water treatment services don’t improve.

Mia Malan is the founder and editor-in-chief of Bhekisisa. She has worked in newsrooms in Johannesburg, Nairobi and Washington, DC, winning more than 30 awards for her radio, print and television work.

Yolanda Mdzeke is a multimedia reporter at Bhekisisa.

Mohale Moloi is Bhekisisa's television producer and a health journalist.

As an SABC TV reporter in the Mandela years, Jessica Pitchford covered news events during one of the most exciting periods of South Africa’s history. She’s worked as a documentary producer for Special Assignment, story editor for current affairs shows Carte Blanche & Checkpoint, as head researcher for Netflix production ‘Senzo’  and has written five non-fiction books.

Tshidiso Lechuba is a freelance video editor working in Johannesburg.

Tshidiso Thangwana is a freelance cameraman working in Johannesburg.

Dylan Bush is Bhekisisa's production and multimedia manager.

RELATED ARTICLES
MORE FROM AUTHOR