Millions spent on cleaning SA’s roads

More than 1400 bags of litter are collected every month on the 138 km stretch of road from Umdloti to Empangeni.

This shocking number is a harsh reminder of how we continue to destroy our environment with daily thoughtless acts.

Today is World Environment Day (June 5).

‘Connecting People to Nature’ is the theme this year, and the South African National Roads Agency (SANRAL) is sending out a strong reminder to people to stop littering on our roads.

“It is just astonishing how much people throw out of their vehicle windows, with little regard on the impact it has,” said Mpati Makoa, SANRAL’s Environmental Manager.

Cleaning up the mess left behind by drivers on a daily basis has become an unfortunate part of SANRAL’s role across the country and it is an expensive and time-consuming exercise.

Fast food wrappers, boxes and soft drink bottles are among the typical litter findings, along with multiple bags of household refuse.

All litter is disposed of at registered local municipal landfill sites at each town along the routes.

Looking at major routes in both the Western and Northern Cape, approximately 22 000 bags of litter are collected on average every month.

Where possible, a sizable portion is diverted away from landfills and used for recycling initiatives, particularly glass and plastic.

“If you throw away a piece of litter each day, it can become a veritable mountain of rubbish by the end of the year.

“Millions of rand is spent just to clean up litter that many people have thoughtlessly tossed out on the streets and other public spaces. It also poses a threat to public and ecosystem health as it ends up in water systems and impacting aquatic habitats, clogging our culverts and bridges.

“This, in turn, increases the frequency and cost of infrastructure maintenance.

“Let’s celebrate World Environment Day by not littering.”

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