AfriForum wants to focus on solutions during 2018 landfill site audit project

The civil rights organisation AfriForum today launched its national landfill site audit project at the Hatherley landfill site in Mamelodi. According to AfriForum’s annual landfill site audit report, this landfill site complied with only 36% of the minimum requirements in 2016, but last year, after AfriForum’s continuous pressure on the municipality, the landfill site underwent a revolution with an achievement of 80%.

“AfriForum will this year once again perform landfill site audits countrywide. These audits are done based on the minimum requirements a landfill site needs to comply with according to legislation. The organisation will attempt to audit 120 landfill sites in the next four weeks in those areas where established AfriForum branches are located. The results will subsequently be incorporated in a report and handed over to the Department of Environmental Affairs together with suggestions for improvement,” says Chris Boshoff, Coordinator of Environmental Affairs at AfriForum.

The civil rights watchdog will furthermore after completion of the project introduce an alternative plan for landfill sites in South Africa in cooperation with a waste-to-energy company. Similar projects are extremely successful in countries such as Sweden and China.

According to Frans Dekker, Head of Landfill Sites in the Tshwane Metro, audits like these are of cardinal importance to point out shortcomings, as well as to indicate where improvements can take place.

“Every member of the public does however still have a responsibility to apply recycling themselves.”

Marcus Pawson, AfriForum’s Head of Environmental Affairs, believes AfriForum branches fulfil an extremely important watchdog function in respect of healthy environmental management.

“We and our offspring have the right to a healthy environment which doesn’t impair our health or pollute the environment. Each landfill site has a license which demands that it is audited by independent parties. AfriForum provides a platform for this to communities.”

In 2017, 78% of the 105 landfill sites that were audited did not comply with the minimum standards. AfriForum fulfils a watchdog function, but is at the same time do-it-yourself and solution orientated to meet the various challenges facing South Africa. In this way communities are gaining a bigger say regarding matters directly affecting them.

Support AfriForum’s landfill site audit project: SMS the name of your town to 45354 (R1).