With the recent water sight inspection conducted in Rio de Janeiro, it looks like athletes will be swimming in the swamp of garbage at the 2016 Olympics.
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Planned pollution reduction measures include a £7million ecobarrier and ecoboat system to protect race areas from floating rubbish, a new pipeline to divert sewage from Marina da Gloria, scheduled to be ready by November, the closure of closing landfill sites, reducing industrial pollution and increasing water treatment works.
“We’ve spent a lot of time there the past few years and haven’t had any issues with the water”, said Railey.
In what is the first independent, comprehensive testing done on viruses and bacteria at the Rio Olympics site, the AP found that athletes will be swimming and boating in a literal cesspool contaminated with human feces and occasionally, dead and putrefying fish.
Athletes said that the conditions of the water appeared better than they were expecting.
“For years now we’ve seen the flow of raw sewage, which contains fecal coliforms and other bacteria, viruses, protozoa and an infinite number of pathogenic microorganisms that can cause everything from ringworm to hepatitis”, Moscatelli said.
“What you have there is basically raw sewage“, marine biologist, from Southern California Coastal Water Research Project, John Griffith, said.
The global Sailing Federation (ISAF) continues to address concerns and is taking steps to ensure the health and safety of all athletes who will be competing in the upcoming 2015 Aquece Rio Olympic Test Event and the Rio 2016 Olympic Sailing Competition (event details).
Despite the test results, an Olympic official told AP that there are no plans to address or monitor the problem.
Water pollution has long plagued Brazil’s urban areas, where most sewage isn’t collected, let alone treated.
Vera Oliveira, head of water monitoring for Rio’s municipal environmental secretariat, said officials are not testing viral levels at the Olympic venues, the water quality of which is the city’s responsibility.
Almost 1,400 athletes will be sailing in Guanabara Bay, swimming off Copacabana Beach and rowing on Rodrigo De Freitas lagoon. “I have never had any health problems sailing in the Guanabara Bay”.
“Athlete safety is always of the utmost importance to USA Triathlon, and we take this situation very seriously”, he said in the release.
“By both European and American standards, the quality of the water is appropriate for the events”, the secretariat said in a statement. These are viruses that are known to cause respiratory and digestive illnesses, including explosive diarrhea and vomiting, but can also lead to more serious heart, brain and other diseases.
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However the Brazilian government’s own water testing shows that on June 25 water at the famous Copacabana Beach was above legal bacteria limits.
