Wipe out the wipes: Main cause of sewer blockages in Cape Town revealed
Over 1,000 blockages caused by items like nappies and wet wipes hit Camps Bay and surrounds between July 2023 and March 2025.
drains blocked wipes
CapeTalk's Clarence Ford is joined by the City of Cape Town's MMC for Water and Sanitation, Councillor Zahid Badroodien.
Listen below:
They may provide a soft, soothing and scented addition to your daily bathrooms breaks, but they're causing nothing but headaches and hassle for the City of Cape Town.
Between July 2023 and March 2025, the City’s Water and Sanitation teams have been hard at work fixing more than a whopping 1,000 sewer pipe blockages in Camps Bay, Bakoven, Clifton, and Sea Point.
The main culprit? Wet wipes.
They're coagulating in the pipes and wreaking havoc underground.
Councillor Badroodien says these and other non-flushable items are clogging up the system and causing messy overflows and costly damage.
"I'm aware there are some companies that are promoting these as biodegradable and residents are using them more and more."
- Councillor Zahid Badroodien, MMC for Water and Sanitation - City of Cape Town
"They offer some comfort when doing their personal business, but certainly in our sewer space... it's causing immense havoc."
- Councillor Zahid Badroodien, MMC for Water and Sanitation - City of Cape Town
The City is appealing to residents to be aware of the impact of improper household waste being disposed of down drains.
It's asking that only human waste and toilet paper gets flushed.
"We're purchasing additional sewer vehicles to get to these issues as fast as we can. We've spent about R53 million on that."
Councillor Zahid Badroodien, MMC for Water and Sanitation - City of Cape Town
Badroodien suggest many residents are simply unaware the impact that disposing of things like nappies, wet wipes, and even rags has on the sewer network - and the environment.
"I think it's a case of out of sight, out of mind."
- Councillor Zahid Badroodien, MMC for Water and Sanitation - City of Cape Town
"These items do not break down like toilet paper, and severely damage our sewer infrastructure. They increase the risk of blockages and overflows, which pose a serious threat to both the environment and public health."
- Councillor Zahid Badroodien, MMC for Water and Sanitation - City of Cape Town