Illegal dumping turns Ermelo’s streets into hazardous landfill
Everything from household rubbish and garden refuse to building rubble is being dumped across town.
ERMELO – The town is facing a growing crisis as illegal dumping turns open spaces into unsightly and unhygienic messes.
Everything from household rubbish and garden refuse to building rubble is being dumped across town.
The persistent issue is transforming once-clean areas into rubbish dumps, posing significant health risks to nearby homes and businesses by attracting pests and vermin.
The problem is further aggravated by waste pickers and free-roaming cattle that frequently tear open garbage bags, leaving the contents scattered across the ground.
Driving around town, one often sees pedestrians and motorists discarding litter on the roadside or throwing it out of car windows, further adding to the problem.
A resident on the Morgenzon Road contacted Highvelder about people dumping bakkie-loads of rubbish on the roadside.
“Those responsible demonstrate a complete disregard for the environment,” the resident said, adding that she believes people are simply too lazy to drive to the dumpsite to dispose of their waste properly.
Highvelder reached out to the Msukaligwa Local Municipality (MLM) spokesperson, Mandla Zwane, for comment on the relevant by-laws and their enforcement.
In his response, he said the MLM prohibits illegal dumping under the National Environmental Management: Waste Act 59 of 2008, Section 26(1), which states that no person may:
(a) dispose of waste, or knowingly or negligently cause or permit waste to be disposed of, on any land, waterbody or facility unless authorised by law;
(b) dispose of waste in a manner that is likely to cause pollution of the environment or harm to health and well-being.
“The municipality currently provides waste collection services to all local businesses and households according to its collection schedule,” Zwane said.
He added that residents of Msukaligwa are encouraged to dispose of their garden waste, construction rubble and excess domestic waste at the landfill site free of charge.
“Recycling is a key component of waste minimisation strategies within the MLM. We therefore encourage waste picker integration into our collection programme through recycling-at-source initiatives and at our landfill site,” he concluded.
