Do your part to recycle in Pretoria

There’s no doubt that the festive season comes with a disruption to the usual day-to-day rhythm for most households in Pretoria. Some will go away on holiday, some will be home more than usual and others will host family and friends for the traditional festivities of the period.

For many, this time of year is a time of gift-giving and giving back, a time to make changes and do some good in the world. This means it is the perfect opportunity to do your part for the environment and make sure your trash is properly taken care of.

Much of the trash we throw away can be recycled, reused or disposed of in a better way.

Food scraps can be used as fertiliser. Gift wrapping, so long as it does not contain plastics such as glitter, can be recycled with other paper waste and boxes for the larger Christmas gifts can be recycled.

Always sort your recycling, trying as far as possible to group items. Sorting can get extreme, with dyed paper, bleached paper and ‘organic’ paper, for example, separated for best results. But don’t let this intimidate you – even if you just sort metals from other items, you are making a difference.

Drop points

Many recycling businesses in Pretoria welcome drop-offs or collections of recyclable materials but be warned, if it is unsorted or not actually recyclable, they might turn you away. But done right, you might even leave the facility with some extra cash for your efforts.

To quickly find the recycling drop-off points near you, the Sustainable Seas Trust (SST) has a handy interactive map that shows all the points across South Africa. SST is a science-based organisation that works to protect Africa’s marine resources for the benefit of all who live on the continent.

Waste pickers

Living in Pretoria means that you would be all too familiar with the waste pickers that work throughout the city. These informal workers work gruelling hours sifting through the city’s garbage to find the recyclable items in the trash, providing an essential and important service while being paid around R120 per day for their efforts.

Easily identifiable by the carts that they use, waste pickers can travel as far as 10km to drop off a load after they have spent the morning sorting recyclables from trash. In fact, The African Reclaimers Organisation (ARO) won a 2021 Living Planet Award for Organisations from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) for the waste pickers’ contribution to recycling.

That’s why doing your part to make it easier for them can help conserve the environment and their livelihoods.

Separate your trash and clearly mark or keep it next to the municipal bins. Some waste pickers target specific materials, so separating items such as cans and metals from plastics or paper will save them time and the arduous task of going through the trash.

These workers also appreciate fresh food items given in hygienic containers – not your leftovers or expired food – and other donations, especially during the festive season as some have children to feed and an upcoming school year to prepare for.

Reusing

Finally, avoid recycling altogether. Recycling does not solve the problem, it is just a good alternative to landfills and allowing trash to end up in nature.

Avoid disposable cooking and eating tools such as roasting pans and plastic knives and forks when hosting large groups of people. Use cloth wrapping to wrap gifts – the cloth wrapping is a gift in itself – and save gift bags and wrapping paper that are in good condition for future gifts.

ALSO READ: 223 Babies born in Gauteng on Christmas day

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