Preliminary tests conducted on seawater samples collected from inshore areas along Kuwait's coasts have shown traces of the cholera bacteria, according to medical experts.

The Ministry of Health (MoH) reportedly sent a doctor from its environmental health department to take the samples for testing at its general health department, with the tests finding traces of the deadly disease bacteria in them. Cholera causes severe diarrhea and can be fatal to sufferers. The presence of the cholera bacteria is believed to be due to the recent dumping of raw, untreated sewage into the sea due to the breakdown of the Mishref sewage plant.

Meanwhile, Dr. Fadhil Safar, the Ministry of Public Works and State Minister of Municipal Affairs, has voiced optimism that the Mishref plant will be operational again sooner rather than later. He announced that a plan had been put into place to begin operating the pumps there by yesterday (Tuesday), adding that the ministry is working closely with the joint teams in order to ensure that the sewage is treated before being dumped at sea.

Dr. Safar revealed that a detailed report had been issued listing the reasons behind the problems at the Mishref sewage plant and their consequences, which he had delivered to the parliamentary environment committee. The committee head, MP Dr. Ali Al-Omair, said that the situation seems to be under control, stating that the threat of contamination to marine life in Kuwaiti waters is receding. Committee member MP Salem Al-Namlan also called for focusing on fixing the problem before moving onto apportioning blame and holding those responsible accountable.

Fellow parliamentarian and environmental committee member Dr. Maasouma Al-Mubarak voiced suspicion over the measures taken by the government to tackle the problem of the marine pollution resulting from the dumping of raw sewage, adding that the Environmental Public Authority (EPA) has yet to confirm that the water desalination plants are wholly free from the pollutants. She also pointed out that the cabinet has failed to respond to a number of questions raised by MPs during the recent environment committee meeting.

EPA head Ali Haider said that all the tests performed so far indicate that marine life in Kuwaiti waters is safe from the dangers of pollution contamination. On another subject, a cabinet insider said that the cabinet is not entertaining the idea of attending a possible emergency session called for by the Reform and Development Bloc to discuss the preparations in place to deal with the swine flu disease. The cabinet insider added that anything concerning this issue can be discussed at a meeting of the parl
iamentary health committee. He added that MPs ought to leave dealing with the issue to the executive directorates and refrain from "politicizing" it since the disease is a global pandemic, reported Al-Rai.

Dr. Hassan Al-Bashri, a regional consultant on emerging diseases, said that the steps taken so far by Kuwait's health ministry in response to the disease had been excellent and comply fully with the global guidelines. Following a meeting with Minister of Health Dr. Helal Al-Sayer, Dr. Al-Bashri said that the situation is under control in the country and that there is no need for panic.

Meanwhile, head of the Farwaniya Governorate Maintenance Department, Eid Shaman, recently said that the flooding of sewage water that took place in the Rihab area was small and was put under control before it could cause any damage to streets in the area. He added that work in Farwaniya was going smoothly and that no malfunctions have taken place in the sewage networks of areas in the governorate.

Shaman made his comments in a press statement where he said that the flood that occurred on the road between Rabbiya and Rihab was very limited and posed no problem to the main sewage network, adding that teams of the department conducted prompt maintenance work at the location in order to stop the flood that was caused due to an overload on the network.

He added that the overload was caused due to an increase in the rate of sewage water pumped into the "A12" plant, which will soon be shut down and be replaced by the "A7" plant that was recently established so that similar incidents could be prevented in the future, Al-Rai reported. Furthermore, Shaman indicated that the Ministry of Public Works gave great importance to the maintenance and renewing of the sewage network on a periodic basis in order to meet the increasing amount of pumped sewage and protecting the environment from pollution.

Kuwaittimes