SA’s waste becoming a loadshedding-style national crisis
WASTE is fast becoming South Africa’s next major service crisis. Just as loadshedding reshaped daily life and the water supply crisis continues, the growing failure of waste management is set to define the next phase in South Africa’s infrastructure breakdown. Ahead of the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment’s Budget Vote, the Recycling and Economic Development Initiative of South Africa (REDISA) urged Minister Willie Aucamp to use his budget speech to confront South Africa’s waste mismanagement.
“Electricity and water have shown us what happens when systems are allowed to decay. Waste is on the same path. If we don’t address it, in a decade the country will be setting up public health crisis committees and war rooms for waste too,” said Hermann Erdmann, CEO of REDISA.
Waste management should be an urgent priority of the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) as it is posing widespread public health risks. Waste management is also a missed opportunity for economic growth and job creation. Research indicates that effective management of just 13 of SA’s waste streams could grow GDP by up to 1.5 percentage points.
“South Africa collects billions of rands in environmental levies through its Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) policy. Yet environmental and recycling performance remains uneven and, in many areas, is rapidly deteriorating. We need to return to the models that have worked in the past,” explained Dr Chris Crozier, a member of REDISA’s Executive Committee.
Urgent attention is needed, especially around waste tyre management. Waste tyres encapsulate the current failure. South Africa generates more than 70 000 waste tyres every single day, yet less than 30% currently being recycled.
Waste tyres are among the most toxic forms of pollution, and they are currently being stockpiled in depots, dumped on open land, or left in communities. South Africa’s waste tyre depots are serious fire risks. Waste tyre pollutants contaminate air, soil and water, and contribute to respiratory illness.
“After a process of almost ten years, South Africa still does not have a final, functional Industry Waste Tyre Management Plan. We cannot afford another decade of plans, workshops and consultations,” said Erdmann.
“A proper waste tyre management system can remove tyres from the environment, support recyclers, create work for collectors and transporters, and build viable waste enterprises. But that requires clear rules, ringfenced funding and a plan that can actually be implemented,” said Dr Crozier.
South Africans need a clear commitment that the waste crisis will no longer be managed through endless planning cycles.
