EASTERN CAPE LANDFILL SITES IN POOR CONDITION
AfriForum audited 153 landfill sites across South Africa this year as part of the organisation’s national project to measure the quality of landfill sites in South Africa.
None of the seven landfill sites that were audited in the Eastern Cape complied with national standards. In terms of applicable legislation and regulations, including the National Environmental Management: Waste Act 59 of 2008, all landfill sites must comply with specific requirements.
According to Arno Greyling, AfriForum’s District Coordinator for the Southern and Eastern Cape, most of the landfill sites in the Eastern Cape are in a poor state. “This can be attributed mainly to a total lack of good management and large-scale cadre deployment which lead to expertise being lost.”
Greyling says that the most common problems that AfriForum identified during the audit included the absence of landfill site licences and a complete mismanagement of sites. It also seems like there is simply no respect for the legal requirements of landfill sites and that the people in charge see themselves as untouchable and unaccountable.
Municipal deterioration is rampant and it is noticeable that especially smaller municipalities are subject to large-scale mismanagement.
AfriForum met with Barbara Creecy, Minister of Environmental Affairs, and her team on various occasions. Six terrains were identified that the Department will tackle in cooperation with AfriForum to bring these up to standard again. AfriForum will also focus on solving problems at certain landfill sites in the province in cooperation with the relevant municipality. The organisation will apply pressure to get these sites up to standard. AfriForum will monitor the situation closely to ensure that these sites’ standards improve sufficiently.
- Read the complete report here.
