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Mashaba outlines plan to deal with Joburg waste

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Joburg Executive Mayor Herman Mashaba Picture: Jabu Kumalo
Joburg Executive Mayor Herman Mashaba Picture: Jabu Kumalo

1.6 million tonnes of waste are deposited into landfill sites every year, leaving the City of Johannesburg looking for a viable waste management solution as the sites continue to overflow.

“Unfortunately we have reached a point where our landfill sites are running out of airspace, and for this reason responsible waste management is crucial,” Joburg mayor Herman Mashaba said today in Soweto at the launch of the partnership between the city’s waste management service provider, Pikitup, and Miss Earth South Africa.

Kicking off World Environment Day with the #WasteStopsWithMeCampaign, Mashaba said that the partnership aims to “protect and preserve the environment”.

To help with this, the City has allocated the following in helping to clear away waste and help manage the clean-up process:

• R2.4 billion to Pikitup to clear illegal dumping and meet waste collection needs during the 2017/18 financial year;

• R150 million for the cleaning of informal settlements during 2017/18; and

• R50 million for Pikitup to continue its third cleaning shift within the inner city.

Already 264 889 households are participating in a Pikitup project, ‘Seperation-At-Source’.

“This initiative ensures that every household receives two refuse bags per week for recyclable material – one for paper and one for mixed materials such as glass, plastic and tins which is then collected by Pikitup,” he said.

Mashaba also emphasised the importance of water, stating that the City’s “average tariff increase of 12.2% for the 2017/2018 finacial year” highlights water as a scarce resource.

“Depending on household income, our poorest residents will receive between 10 and 15 kilolitres of free water per household, per month,” Mashaba said.

Only registered needy residents will now receive free basic water.

Mashaba also spoke of the need to respect biodiversity conservation and improve the access to public open space for recreation for all its communities.

Air-quality improvement is also a priority.

“By working together, we can ensure that we turn Joburg into a healthy, clean and sustainable city, which will provide opportunities to residents for generations to come,” he said.

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