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Sunny skies, white sands and crystal-clear waters. There's plenty to love about Cape Town's beaches, and with eight of them awarded Blue Flag status for the 2026/27 summer season, the Mother City's coastline is looking better than ever. Add in the city's wonderful tidal pools, and there's no shortage of places to cool off this summer.
But before you dive into those sparkling waters, here's a question worth asking: do you know what might be floating around out there?
Because Cape Town's coastline harbours a dirty (not-so-little) secret: three marine outfalls that discharge wastewater directly into the Atlantic Ocean. And when we say wastewater, we mean sewage.
Located offshore at Camps Bay, Green Point and Hout Bay, these underwater pipelines pump millions of litres of partially treated sewage into the Atlantic Ocean every day. The sewage is screened to remove larger solids and debris, but doesn't undergo the conventional treatment processes used at the City's wastewater treatment plants. Instead, the system relies on ocean currents to dilute and disperse the effluent.
Not exactly the postcard-perfect picture of a Cape Town summer, is it?
Is the water safe? Have your say...
Of course, that doesn't necessarily mean Cape Town's beaches are unsafe for swimming. The outfalls discharge well offshore, and the City maintains that its monitoring shows no significant impact on recreational water quality.
In May 2026, it reported that more than 98 per cent of seawater samples collected around the three outfalls between January and March met recommended guidelines. But questions remain about the environmental impact of pumping wastewater into the ocean. And now, Capetonians have an opportunity to have their say.
The City of Cape Town has announced a public consultation on the latest quarterly monitoring results for its three marine outfalls, with residents invited to examine the data and submit feedback.
The consultation will also include newly issued coastal water discharge permits for Simon's Town, Mitchell's Plain and Oudekraal.
Want to have your say? The consultation runs from 20 November to 4 December 2026, with presentations and permits available to view and download at capetown.gov.za/collaborate.
And if you're wondering about the water quality at your favourite swimming spot, the City's Beach Alerts platform offers up-to-date testing results for beaches and tidal pools around the peninsula.
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