The mountains of refuse choking Alexandra’s streets will not disappear overnight, chair of chairs in the City of Johannesburg and Ward 116 councillor Adolph Marema has conceded, as the city scrambles to contain a waste crisis fuelled by weeks of disruption at Pikitup depots.

Marema joined fellow councillors and city officials on August 5 for a clean-up initiative in Alexandra, part of the broader Pikitup Recovery Clean-up drive launched to tackle mounting waste backlogs amid ongoing protests at Pikitup facilities, including the Marlboro depot.

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Speaking ahead of the operation, Marema called for a targeted, ward-by-ward approach, suggesting that resources be directed first at the worst dumping hotspots rather than spread thin across the community. “There is that space in every ward where it is now unbearable, stinking, and we are on the verge of getting sick. Councillors know where that place is in their ward; these trucks, if they can concentrate there,” he said.

“If we can get one truck, if at all, even a bobcat. Every ward must have some sense of areas being cleared.”

Region E director Makgafela Thaba confirmed that the clean-up was focused squarely on the areas hit hardest by illegal dumping, where service gaps left by Pikitup’s recent operational troubles have allowed waste to pile up unchecked. He said the drive was prioritising sites carrying the heaviest volumes of dumped refuse.

Among the worst-affected sites is Vincent Tshabalala Road, long notorious among commuters for stretches buried under uncollected rubbish, alongside Lenin Drive, another hotspot battered by persistent dumping.

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Thaba urged Alexandra residents, particularly those relying on informal dumping points, to bag their waste before disposal to make collection more manageable.

“Those using the traffic island on London should not just dump it as it is; they should try by all means to bag it so that when we come through, we can collect it properly,” he said.

He noted that the city had brought in independent service providers to help plug the gap in collection services while Pikitup’s operational issues are resolved.

The clean-up comes as Pikitup continues to grapple with disruptions tied to protest action in Marlboro. On August 3, the entity confirmed that casual workers employed through contracted waste collection service providers had blockaded entrances to several depots, including Marlboro, demanding to be permanently employed by the entity, action that has crippled trucks’ and permanent staff’s ability to collect waste.

Pikitup said it is engaging affected service providers, stakeholders and law enforcement to restore normal operations. The city’s deputy mayor and MMC for finance, Loyiso Masuku, confirmed that the city manager and his team are working hard with Pikitup to resolve the challenges.

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