Rubbish piles up outside expensive dump site

Rubbish is accumulating outside a R2 million collection point in Motherwell, with some residents saying it is too steep to climb up to drop their waste in the skip container inside.

The waste drop-off point in NU9, Motherwell, was built a couple of years ago. It is a skip, fenced and guarded by a security guard. It is the only drop-off point in the entire township.

Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality spokesperson Mthubanzi Mniki said it cost R1,9 million to build. He said drop-off sites are built to Department of Environmental Affairs standards and residents should not dump their rubbish outside the facility.

But Thabani Lungani, 76, who lives in a street nearby, says he struggles to empty his wheelie bin at the collection centre.

“It is a good idea to have such a facility in our area but it is very hard to climb the steep slope to empty our wheelie bins. I see many people dumping their rubbish outside,” said Lungani.

Ward 23 Councillor Sandile Nzanzeka said illegal dumping was giving Motherwell a bad image.

“We discourage people from throwing litter … People should always use formal dumping points to dispose of their rubbish,” he told residents during a recent meeting in NU1 community hall, Motherwell.

Thembela Mapukate, of the Eastern Cape Department of Economic Development, Environmental Affairs and Tourism, said municipal trucks came to collect garbage in Motherwell and if residents had extra rubbish they should not leave it outside the dump site.

“The problem comes when people wake up late or are not at home when municipal trucks come to collect waste.T hese people [then] dump it outside the drop-off centre instead of dumping in the huge container inside. Some people dump at schools and clinics. That is not good.”

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