Landfill site audit: Municipal decay is evident  

AfriForum published the organisation’s annual landfill site audit report today after landfill sites in the towns/cities in which AfriForum has branches, were audited earlier this year. The report will be discussed with Barbara Creecy, the Minister of Environmental Affairs as part of a continuous discussion that started in 2019. It will also be submitted to the Green Scorpions for further investigation. Only 17% (27 of 153) of the sites comply with the minimum requirements of the National Environmental Management: Waste Act (Act no. 59 of 2008).

According to legislation there are specific requirements to which landfill sites have to comply. In order to conduct the landfill site audit, a list containing 33 questions were compiled and these minimum standards were used as a guideline.

“The low percentage can be attributed to several problems at municipalities that lead to the poor and illegal management of landfill sites. Irregular spending of funds, substandard maintenance and a lack of competent personnel are but a few of the problems we encounter every day. The biggest challenge is officials in municipalities who know very well there will not be any repercussions for their poor management. It is concerning to know that the majority of landfill sites in South Africa don’t even comply with the minimum requirements, but at the same time it is understandable since municipalities are not being held responsible for their mismanagement,” says Lambert de Klerk, Manager of Environmental Affairs at AfriForum.

It is noticeable that several sites have closed down; there are also some sites that are still operational but should have been closed down according to their licenses. This is concerning because it means some cities or towns no longer have landfill sites – which will probably result in illegal dumping.

“We have been meeting with Creecy since 2019’s landfill audit and have had continuous communication with the minister and her team. There are now six sites that have been identified for improvement. In May 2021 a decision was made to engage in active cooperation and to visit these six sites to work on addressing the challenges at these sites. One of the options is to establish public/private partnerships (PPPs),” says De Klerk.

The establishment of waste monitoring committees is crucial in holding municipal officials accountable.

Communities can follow these steps to bring about sustainable improvement at a landfill site:

• Communities must place pressure on municipalities to establish waste monitoring committees.
• A meeting must be held once a month during which the state of the landfill site is discussed and goals with feasible deadlines are set.
• Build good relationships with the municipalities and role-players involved.
• Insist on the appointment of a trusted service provider that is competent to do the work.
• Apply sustainable pressure via the waste monitoring committee to ensure that the deadlines that were set are adhered to.

De Klerk continues to say the time for the government to make solutions such as PPP a reality is now, before the total collapse of municipal infrastructure. The government cannot even implement their own plans such as the integrated waste management plan (IWMP) and this is where local communities can play a role in offering solutions.

De Klerk believes municipalities should consider these types of solutions to get South Africa’s waste management up to standard. “AfriForum is willing to help with the implementation of solutions and encourages municipalities to contact the organisation. It is the responsibility of each and everyone one of us to ensure that our environment is not polluted and for that reason we also want to contribute to a cleaner South Africa.”

Municipal Landfill Audit Report 2021 – ENG

This is how landfill sites performed in each province with regards to the minimum requirements:

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