The City of Ekurhuleni (CoE) announced it would only empty Ekurhuleni-branded wheelie bins and will no longer remove black plastic bags.
Due to uncertainty from many communities over which wheelie bin is acceptable, the CoE decided to extend the roll-out of this to August 1.
Ward 18 Clr Heather Hart said the announcement came as a surprise to the councillors as it was announced on a CoE social media page.
Hart said after many inquiries, councillors contacted the Edenvale Waste Services depot in Sebenza and ascertained that all areas serviced by the depot were affected.
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“After we confirmed the information and sent it out to the public on our own social media pages, questions kept coming up in seeking clarity,” said Hart.
A question which Hart could not answer was how residents were meant to know about this change if they were not notified by metro.
She said due to this outpour of questions, metro extended the time period to August 1.
“Many residents were extremely angered by the poor communication from metro and slammed this operation as another Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality (EMM) disaster.
“While we have tried our best to calm ruffled feathers, we have to agree that the operation could have been handled far better, with a leaflet dropped at each property being the ideal solution. At least then the metro would have done its best to notify all property owners,” said Hart.
She said anyone without an EMM-branded bin must obtain one, the old bin does not have to be taken in when collecting a new bin.
She said that residents must take a copy of a municipal account and their ID when collecting a new bin.
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“If they don’t want the old bin, and it was a metro-issued bin, they are welcome to take it back,” said Hart.
Hart said over the years residents have purchased or obtained second EMM bins and are only paying for one and this process will now assist to ensure that only bins that are paid for are collected.
Ward 19 Clr Bill Rundle said the main issue with the roll-out of the wheelie bins was the poor communication by metro.
Rundle said councillors did their best by using social media to inform and advise residents on the matter.
He added the depot has been running out of new bins, which left residents frustrated.
“The metro wants to ensure that all bins being used are billed for. Many bins bought privately are not registered and the revenue is being lost. It is only fair that one pays for the service,” said Rundle.
Rundle added there is also a disconnect between the collectors and the admin office.
He said councillors will monitor closely to assist residents where possible.
Ward 20 Clr Jill Humphreys said she has sent a number of queries to metro regarding the roll-out of wheelie bins in Bedfordview.
She said that metro needs to be clear about the black bags not being taken as there is no nearby garden waste disposal site in Bedfordview.
She is looking for a suitable site in Bedfordview.
“It must also be noted that residents can have as many bins as they need, but they will pay for the service; per bin, per month,” said Humphreys.
Humphreys said the point of the roll-out is for refuse removal teams to be able to recognise paid-for bins.
“If bins have been replaced by private purchase, it’s possible that it’s not charged on the rates account,” said Humphreys.
Request for comment was sent to CoE on June 25.
Comment was requested by June 27 at 9am.
No comment was received.
