Water treatment in Uganda’s capital city is becoming more and more expensive because of the increased pollution of Lake Victoria. As a result, for the people that live there, paying the water bill is getting harder and harder. Full of rubbish and stinking of assorted effluent – this open sewer running through the centre of Uganda’s capital, Kampala may be dream park for these storks, but it’s disastrous for city residents. Pollution is rapidly pushing up the cost of water. Prices have doubled in the last year, straining the household budgets of families. Claire Kalema, Kampala resident and mother of three, “You have clothes, dirty clothes, the children are dirty, you have to cook for them tea, you have to cook them food, you have to boil water for drinking. It’s not something very easy to afford.” Kampala sits on the shore of Lake Victoria. From the city centre, the open sewer passes through a swamp and then straight into the Lake, untreated. As well as being used for waste, the lake is also Kampala’s main source of water. Andrew Muwhezi, chief engineer at the water treatment plant, says making polluted water safe requires more chemicals and more energy, so treatment costs are higher. He says the problem is growing. Andrew Muwhezi, Principal Engineer, Gaba Water Treatment Plant, Kampala, “The pollution is getting worse. Because each passing day, more human settlements take place along the shores of the lake. More industries come on board and they are discharging most of their waste water directly into the lake without treating it.” Lake Victoria is the world’s second largest lake, Over thirty million people live around this natural wonder. They depend on its water and fish for their survival. If the increase in pollution is not stopped, the consequences could be dire.