Who and what is AfriForum?

AfriForum is an Afrikaans civil rights organisation that protects the rights of minority groups at national as well as provincial level, and anyone who can identify with AfriForum’s principles and objectives may join the organisation. AfriForum’s community plan focuses on mobilising communities to thus take control of their own streets and neighbourhoods again. AfriForum ensures that your constitutional and civil rights are recognised and protected at national level.

Wie en wat is AfriForum?

AfriForum is ’n Afrikaanse burgerregteorganisasie wat die regte van minderheidsgroepe op sowel nasionale as provinsiale vlak beskerm, en enigiemand wat met AfriForum se beginsels en doelstellings kan identifiseer, mag by die organisasie aansluit. AfriForum se gemeenskapsplan fokus daarop om gemeenskappe te mobiliseer om só weer beheer terug te neem oor hul eie strate en woonbuurtes. AfriForum verseker dat jou grondwetlike én burgerregte op nasionale vlak erken en beskerm word.

Only 11% of landfill sites in Mpumalanga meet standards, AfriForum audit reveals

Only 11% – or two out of the 19 landfill sites and transfer stations audited this year as part of AfriForum’s annual landfill audit in Mpumalanga – comply with the minimum requirements for responsible waste management. The success of these two sites (the Hendrina transfer station in the Steve Tshwete Local Municipality and the White River transfer station in the Mbombela Local Municipality) is overshadowed by the poor performance of the other sites in the province, which managed an average compliance score of only 42%.

According to Hennie Bekker, AfriForum’s Regional Lead for Limpopo and Mpumalanga, this year’s provincial compliance score is an improvement over the previous year, when a score of 39% was recorded.

Furthermore, AfriForum’s landfill audit report indicates that the average compliance score of 42% for sites in Mpumalanga reflects a standard of compliance that ranks among the worst in the country. Mpumalanga performed only marginally better than the three worst-performing provinces this year (North West, the Free State, and the Northern Cape) which achieved average compliance scores of just 40%, 19% and 14%, respectively.

The Western Cape performed the best this year, with an average compliance score of 66%, while Gauteng follows closely behind with 64%.

This year, AfriForum audited 132 landfill sites and transfer stations across all nine provinces; however, only 30 sites (or 23% of the total) met at least 80% of the audit requirements. This indicates that, on average, approximately eight out of every ten sites nationwide exhibit serious shortcomings in infrastructure, operational management or compliance with basic requirements.

According to AfriForum’s Landfill Site Audit Report, which has just been released, sites within the Govan Mbeki Local Municipality, where four sites were audited this year, performed particularly poorly. None of these sites managed to achieve a compliance score higher than 60%.

Of the 19 landfill sites audited in Mpumalanga, the following seven sites all recorded a compliance score of 30% or less (the compliance score is indicated in brackets):

Morgenzon landfill site, Lekwa Local Municipality (0)
eNtokozweni landfill site, Emakhazeni Local Municipality (2)
Volksrust landfill site, Dr. Pixley Ka Isaka Seme Local Municipality (8)
eMakhazeni Landfill Site, Emakhazeni Local Municipality (18)
Mashishing Landfill Site, Thaba Chweu Local Municipality (20)
Delmas Landfill Site, Victor Khanye Local Municipality (22)
eMalahleni Landfill Site, Emalahleni Local Municipality (30)

Although the province’s sites performed somewhat better this year than in previous years, Bekker believes that the decay, deterioration and failure of the province’s landfill sites remain evident and are by no means commendable. “Despite this improvement, the majority of sites in Mpumalanga still fail to meet the basic requirements for responsible waste management. Effective waste management is non-negotiable and has a far-reaching impact on people and the environment. There is no longer time for excuses – the municipalities’ poor performance in this audit clearly indicates that we are heading toward a disaster,” explains Bekker.

Earlier this month, AfriForum submitted its report to the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) in Pretoria. In the meantime, the civil rights organisation will continue to monitor municipal landfill sites annually and engage with authorities, industry stakeholders and communities regarding practical solutions for the country’s waste management challenges. The organisation also encourages communities to become actively involved in responsible waste management, recycling and local initiatives aimed at reducing the volume of waste sent to landfill sites.

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