JEDDAH — An anonymous amateur captured 20 seconds of under sea video footage that was enough to reopen the case file of polluted Jeddah seawater, Al-Hayat reported on Monday. Decades of negligence and lack of supervision contaminated the one thing that Jeddah considers to be its source of pride and that is why it is named ‘Bride of the Red Sea'. The list of officials and institutions involved in this crime has grown to include the Municipality of Jeddah and one of its contractors, and the National Water Company (NWC). heir involvement was found by in a supervisory committee report submitted to the Makkah Emirate. The emirate formed a new committee under its supervision to identify those who dumped large quantities of filthy, contaminated and foul smelling water into the sea. Al-Hayat resources stated that two specialized teams from the Presidency of Meteorology and Environment were dedicated to this cause and especially after the 20-second video appeared on social media during the past couple of days clearly indicating polluted waters under the sea. The supervisory committee that includes representatives from Control and Investigation Board and the Presidency of Meteorology and Environment is responsible for identifying the sector that caused this pollution and hold it accountable for causing environmental damage to the sea. The committee is also responsible for creating a sustainable mechanism to conserve water. According to Al-Hayat resources, the report submitted to the emirate to investigate the video on social media identified several issues: a large pump, belonging to the NWC and installed with municipality's permission, is located near the sewage system in front of the Conference Palace in Al-Hamra District. Untreated sewage water in large quantity was being released through this pump directly into the sea. It has changed the color of the seawater that surrounds it and created a foul odor in the area.” In the report, the PME stated: “During the work to fix a broken area of the sewage pipe located in Al-Hamra District, large quantities of sewage water flooded the area. This is the responsibility of the NWC as it has been dumping contaminated waters via tankers in areas prone to floods when it was supposed to be sent to recycling stations. This increased the contamination.” Al-Hayat resources stated that PME President Abdulaziz Al-Jasser has filed a complaint highlighting observations his supervisory team noted when conducting field tours near the sea in Jeddah. It is stated that the municipality has started construction work at the shores without obtaining a legal permit.
