Mpumalanga shows serious decay in AfriForum’s landfill audits
“Serious safety issues arise and force people to dispose of garbage illegally. For example, recyclers target and damage vehicles and, in some cases, even assault people. In areas where the sites are fenced, the fences are broken.”
This year, civil rights organisation AfriForum audited 161 landfills nationwide as part of their national project to determine the condition of landfills in South Africa. According to AfriForum, only one of the 22 landfill sites audited in Mpumalanga met the national standards.
Under applicable legislation and regulations, including the National Environmental Management Act: Waste 59 of 2008, there are requirements a landfill site must meet.
According to Arlo van Heerden, AfriForum’s district co-ordinator for the Lowveld, most landfills in Mpumalanga were in a bad state.
“This can mainly be attributed to financial problems that municipalities faced because of misappropriation of funds and corruption.
“The worst problem AfriForum’s Mpumalanga branches noticed during this audit is that of the Bethal landfill site. It is getting bigger and bigger and already extends to the R38, the main road between Bethal and Standerton.
“There are no fences, and recyclers target vehicles on this road. This is a source of concern because the municipal officials of the Govan Mbeki Municipality are not being held accountable.
“Serious safety issues arise and force people to dispose of garbage illegally. For example, recyclers target and damage vehicles and, in some cases, even assault people. In areas where the sites are fenced, the fences are broken. Security guards, if there are any, have no defence against the illegal crowd,” said Hennie Bekker, AfriForum’s district co-ordinator for the Highveld.
This situation was attributable to the Department of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment (DFO), being controlled by three spheres of government. The national department only had the power to establish laws, policies, norms, and standards at a national level, but they had none at the provincial or municipal level.
The province reported to the provincial MEC but not to the minister. Co-operative Government and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) and the DBVO did not communicate, adding another challenge.
Municipal decay was the order of the day, while smaller municipalities suffered from large-scale mismanagement.
The Victor Khanye Local Municipality was no better because a growing population put extreme pressure on the local landfill site in Botleng, Delmas. With contractors and service providers coming and going, no improvement seemed to happen.
According to AfriForum’s landfill site report for 2023, Delmas reached only 15% conformance when audited this year. In 2019, it was 12%, 30% in 2020, 38% in 2021 and 22% in 2022.
ALSO CHECK: Heidi Kleuterskool op Delmas speel-speel in ’n regte plaas omskep
