Residents have their say about littering

This year, Cleanup SA Week is from September 16 to 21 with Recycling Day on September 20. This campaign aims to increase awareness by educating the community about the social, environmental and economic benefits of recycling.

Review spoke to a few Polokwane residents to find out if they ever littered and, if they did, why they did so.

Lucy Mathlo said she doesn’t litter, “because it is not good for the environment and can cause diseases”.

“Littering while in a vehicle can cause an accident, especially if there is a car driving behind you and your litter lands on their windscreen, affecting visibility,” Jane Manamela, who despises littering, said.

“I wasn’t raised to litter, we always had plastic bags in the car and when we didn’t we would just wait till we got to a dustbin,” Daleen Coetsee said, adding that she knew it was every individual’s job to keep the planet clean.

“I don’t litter because it is wrong. We need to keep our planet clean and beautiful,” Frans Ramanzi said.

“When you litter, you put your responsibility on someone else to keep the place clean,” Joe Thobejane explained.

“I don’t litter. When I’m in the car, I keep the rubbish in the car until we get home or I keep it till I see a dustbin,” Jacobus van Jaarsveldt said.

Some people said they sometimes littered because they believed it to be a form of job creation. Another resident said he would sometimes thow a bananna peel out the window because it was bio-degradable.