Programme of removing waste pain
THE bad state of the landfill site affects many people and the lives of residents living in its vicinity.
In Msunduzi, people from all over Pietermaritzburg use one landfill site and it is for this reason the municipality announced that it has appointed
a service provider that will restore its dignity. Just a mere decade ago in 2010, it won the award as the best Landfill Site in South Africa.
The appointed company, Surg Sut, will operate for six months and it will train landfill site workers and ensure cleanliness.
Surg Sut’s Director Mr Max Lekgatle said that the first thing they had identified was the need to beef up
security by not allowing drivers without drivers licenses to enter the site.
“The reason we do not allow unlicensed drivers to enter the site is to protect people who use the premises. In South Africa drivers license is the main requirement to drive a vehicle,” he said.
Mr Lekgatle said that they have strengthened the process of monitoring people and vehicles entering the site. In the event of emergency this exercise will help to determine the number of people and cars that need to be evacuated.
“We installed advanced machines that can detect the kind of waste that is coming in because in the landfill site there is certain type of garbage that is prohibited such as food,” explains Mr Lekgatle.
He said they have discovered that a certain company that manufactures oil was disposing waste in the site which automatically catches fire when temperature levels reach 36 degrees celsius.
The site itself creates methane gas that is flammable which makes it easy for fire to start.
Msunduzi Administrator Mr Scelo Duma once proposed the banning of plastics in the city because he believed it had a huge impact in polluting the environment and the blockage of the drainage system.
Mr Lekgatle is singing the same tune, stating that plastics block the drainage system in the landfill site and that even waste pickers do not collect them because they are not profitable.
“Our strategy to control the landfill site is that we recycle 90% of waste that is why I am a specialist in this field,” said Mr Lekgatle.
His company’s proudest boast is the experience of Mr Magesh Govender who has worked in this field for eight years, Mr Livhuhani Manyatshe a Civil Engineer since 1982 and Mr Thembinkosi Ntshangase who has 28 years of experience in recycling.
“We have discovered that the waste was not properly compacted and we have discussed this with municipal employees and we are working well together to fix it. The whole space in the site must be used to avoid waste piling up,” Mr Lekgatla explains.
Community members believe that waste pickers and those who have built shacks in the site should be removed as they are suspected of causing fires.
Sikhosiphi Simelane says he has been a waste picker for 25 years in this site, he has never been employed. He said he makes more than R5 400 a month and works everyday.
He was one of the people who used to stay at the site but has since left because he felt it was not safe.
Simelane said waste pickers used to kill each other over garbage.
Miss Nompumelelo Nxumalo took advantage of the situation and started selling food to waste pickers.
“I was a waste picker at the same time selling vetkoekies, they were buying in numbers and eventually I decided to focus on this business because it was profitable.”
She said she makes R700 a day, she sells vetkoekies, full meal, russians and soft drinks.