Durban — The eThekwini Municipality has acknowledged that three challenges contribute to the city’s poor waste management.
The three challenges are:
- An ageing fleet which is prone to constant breakdowns
- Staff shortages which lead to increased overtime
- A culture of littering
This was discussed during a special executive committee meeting on Tuesday.
“To address the challenge of staff shortages, the municipality took a decision in the current financial year to cut overtime by 50% and utilise that funding to fill all vacant posts. The recruitment process is currently under way,” municipal spokesperson Msawakhe Mayisela said.
“On the issue of an ageing fleet, the municipality has invested over R400 million since 2019 to procure a new Durban Solid Waste fleet. Most of the fleet has been delivered and is operating in various communities.
“Apart from these interventions, the city will embark on mass clean-up and educational campaigns to rid the city of illegal dumping sites, from the CBD to residential areas,” he said.
Mayisela added that communities and businesses are encouraged to clean their environment and immediate surroundings. The city also encourages provincial government, national government and state entities to play their part in cleaning their properties, such as railway lines and rail reserves.
Meanwhile, on September 1, Adopt-a-River reported that high tides and high seas resulted in the ocean vomiting litter back at us onto the shore.
“Rightly so….. why should all our muck be polluting her waters,” the Facebook post read.
The environmental conservation organisation said that the Adreach Group Masakhe Media team got straight to tackling the mess.
In another post, Adopt-a-River said: “No beach was spared as the ocean threw back the waste at us! Beachwood Country Club, the home of our Oceans Alive team received some much-needed TLC before the team joined these international students on a waste study. They joined them at the Umgeni to continue logging and weighing what was bagged.”
Commenting on one of Adopt-a-River’s Facebook posts, Karl Dauth said that Durban beachfront was once the place to be, but was now “just a mess”.
Daily News