Concerns growing over Trikomo sewage

Concerns are growing over the disposal of sewage in Trikomo, with the village’s infrastructure unable to cope with a rapidly growing population, particularly in the coastal area of Long Beach.

In recent years, vacuum tankers have been employed to transport sewage away from Trikomo to Famagusta, with each tanker trip costing the Trikomo taxpayer between 2,000TL (€53) and 3,500TL (€92).

However, multiple reports have surfaced in recent months of sewage not being properly disposed of by the tankers, with the vehicles spotted dumping raw sewage at rubbish tips and on the sides of roads this summer.

The latest such incident was seen by Turkish Cypriot opposition political party CTP leader Tufan Erhurman, who said he saw a tanker unloading raw sewage into a rubbish tip near Trikomo.

“Walk and don’t look, don’t be afraid of the filth, the environmental disasters, or the diseases which are at risk of spreading! Walk!”, he satirised, adding that he had called the local authorities.

He added, “investments are being given the go-ahead without anyone considering infrastructure or anything else. There is an influx of population that the region cannot handle. The work being carried out does not comply with environmental legislation and is not overseen by anyone.

“This is a region which is thought to be developed but is drowning in filth and is facing an environmental disaster,” he said.

Erhurman’s sentiments were echoed by Trikomo’s village mukhtar Sermet Nereli, who told newspaper Yeni Duzen on Tuesday that the village’s population may be as high as 21,000.

“Due to these new constructions being close to the sea, sewage water from apartments and building sites is being discharged into wells,” he said, adding that the sea at Long Beach is “not swimmable”, owing to the high concentrations of E. coli.

“They said they would charge money for each house and build a sewer system. They have started charging us money, but the administration is not doing anything,” he added.

The cost of bringing Trikomo’s sewage system up to the required standards and capacity to deal with the current influx of people moving into the area, predominantly into newly built high rises, is estimated €25 million.

On this point, Nereli added that had the requisite investments been made ahead of time, “the problem could have been solved a year and a half ago”, but that “no work has been done.”

Turkish Cypriot Trikomo ‘district officer’ Ertugrul Toroslu insisted to Yeni Duzen that he had met with the village’s Turkish Cypriot mayor Hasan Sadikoglu and the north’s environmental department to discuss the issue.

He said that sewage water from Trikomo should now be deposited at the bicommunal sewage works in Mia Milia, but acknowledged the complaints made to the contrary.

“We are strictly supervising the issue, and serious penalties have been imposed on those who abuse the system. The fact that Mia Milia is far away does not give anyone the right to just dump sewage where they like,” he added.