CMC and government officials discussed the issue of high levels groundwater and its adverse consequences to buildings
Ayman Adly/Staff Reporter
The Central Municipal Council (CMC) on Tuesday urged the competent entities to find solutions to the problems caused by the high levels of groundwater and seepage of sewage water into the basement and foundation of homes across Qatar.
The issue was originally raised almost three ago by the CMC members based on public demands that house owners are sustaining great losses due to the damages caused by this problem, even though the affected buildings were new.
A comprehensive study should be conducted to identify the quality of the plots before any building activity takes place, the CMC demanded yesterday at its regular bi-weekly session.
CMC hosted senior officials from the Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning (MMUP), the Ministry of Environment, the Public Works Authority (Ashghal), and Qatar General Electricity & Water Corporation (Kahramaa) to discuss the issue with them.
The Council also issued a number of detailed recommendations for the competent entities to address the issue as soon as possible with both temporary and long-term solutions.
It was pointed out that the problem is cropping up in various parts of the country, such as Doha, Al-Wakrah, Al-Wukair, Ain Khalid, Abu Hamour and many other areas that still lack a proper and effective network of underground sanitary drainage system.
“It is the first time at the council that we revert to an issue in this way, out of our keenness on public good and to respond to the demands of the residents who are suffering daily from this issue, we hosted you today to work out some effective solutions,” CMC chairman Saud al-Hinzab told the officials.
CMC member Mohamed bin Saleh al-Khayarin was of the view that this problem is the result of defects in strategic planning. He suggested that local house owners, who sustained losses and damages due to sewage leak or high levels of groundwater, should be allocated an annual budget by the country to compensate them for the damages and help them repair it.
There should also be stricter penalties for the building contractors that execute poor quality buildings or infrastructures and force them to repair the damages, he demanded.
“The Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning has already made a black list of such contractors and they would not be able to take new assignments,” said Abdulaziz al-Ubaidan, director of MMUP’s technical affairs department.
“People should also report to us any violations or issues that need to be fixed,” he urged.
Nasser Yousef Fakhro, director of Ashghal’s department of sanitary drainage networks designs, gave a comprehensive presentation on Ashghal efforts and plans to address the issue of high levels of groundwater around the country.
Comprehensive geological surveys and studies on the issue have been conducted throughout the country, including the coastal areas and the outskirts of the country, he explained.
“Besides, there are scheduled projects to permanently resolve the issue of sanitary drainage and sewage systems in the country, but this would entail some time. Accordingly, temporary solutions are being adopted to decrease the adverse consequences and ease the suffering of people,” the official added.
Jassim al-Mansouri, director of Kahramaa’s department of water supervision, stressed that the agency owns and employs the most sophisticated technology in the world to detect in leaks in water pipe connections and respond quickly to any such reports to avoid adverse outcomes.
Eventually, both CMC members and the officials agreed that people should assume more responsibility in addressing such issues through close and regular follow up of the sewage reservoir tanks at their homes and immediately report any leaks to the authorities. In addition, they should inquire about the nature of land before undertaking any private building projects.
