Youth earn pocket money for recycling
UNEMPLOYED graduates in uMlazi have been rolling up their sleeves and collecting rubbish for recycling, in a campaign initiated by an environmentally active nature conservation lecturer at the Mangosuthu University of Technology.
Londi Mbuyisa’s organisation, Isiphepho, which offers them a modest stipend and helps others establish themselves in commercial recycling ventures, this month received a substantial donation.
Petco – a national industry organisation that supports polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic bottle recycling and collections – handed 120 recycling bins, sponsored by SA polymer producer Safripol, to .
“The donation, worth more than R230 000, also included 50 bulk bags, a 12m storage container, platform scale, signage and a 6m volume trailer,” said Petco. “The colour-coded green (glass), yellow (plastics), blue (paper) and red (cans) bins will appear at schools, communities and businesses in and around uMlazi and will allow residents and businesses to separate out their household waste for the first time.
Mbuyisa swung into action after being shocked at the amount of litter around. Her first challenge was to convince people to care about the problem.
In time, she came across a solution. “If they dispose of their waste properly, by separating what can be recycled, it could provide an opportunity for the unemployed,” she said. “They could earn an income.”
Then she learned about exactly what prevented litter collecting and recycling from becoming economically viable. “It was so much easier for people who had cars to reach the buy-back centre, which is 6km from uMlazi, in Isipingo, but difficult for others.”
Meanwhile, 20 schools in uMlazi have so far joined the Separation at Source programme, with Isiphepho collecting a minimum of 10 tons of PET plastic a month. The organisation, whose name means “tornado” in isiZulu, aims to increase the number of schools registered to more than 50 over the next year.
Durban Solid Waste (DSW) has also been working with Isiphepho since its inception in clean-ups, and education and awareness in schools.
“DSW invited Isiphepho to the recycling workshop, which offered them the platform to network with various companies and recommended them for sponsorship,” said spokesperson Msawakhe Mayisela.