Residents embrace trash-for-cash initiative
LANGA residents are turning their trash into cash.
Over four days, residents brought 5.2 tons of glass, 1.9 tons of paper and 295kg of cans they collected to a mobile buy-back service in their area.
In return, they received Kilorands cards that can be redeemed at shops that accept MasterCard. The waste collected amounted to R5 403 in payouts.
The project is spearheaded by Polyco and funded by the PACKA-CHING project, which was piloted in Langa. The aim of the project is to divert 750 tons of packaging waste from landfill sites by increasing recycling in informal settlements and lower-income areas in Cape Town.
A Polyco spokesperson said: “There is a vast amount of visible waste. The large majority of the public is uneducated on the topic of recycling and totally unaware of the opportunities in waste. Much of the waste that we see lying around is packaging material from household products, most of which is recyclable. This project presents an income opportunity, and people are encouraged to take part in recycling in order to improve their community and environment.”
Brooke Kuhne, the PACKA-CHING project co-ordinator, said their recycling trailer visited designated areas to collect recyclable plastic, paper, metal cans and glass that had been collected and separated by community members.
“By teaching children about recycling at a young age, they are more likely to grow up with this practice as second nature. We are thrilled that over 8.5 tons of waste that would otherwise have littered Langa or ended in landfills was collected in under a week,” Kuhne said.