Kick-off of AfriForum’s annual landfill audit project puts the refuse crisis under a magnifying glass

A bright orange refuse removal truck stopped in front of the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and Environmental Affairs’ office in Pretoria today, where AfriForum handed over its petition to carry out landfill audits again this year to the Deputy Director General for Waste Management, Mamogala Musekene. Sharief Starke, Acting Chief Director of Governance and Executive Support at the office of the Director General, received the petition on behalf of Musekene.

This action also kicked off the organisation’s annual landfill audit project. This project determines the extent to which landfills in the municipalities where AfriForum’s nearly 160 branches nationwide are located, meet the requirements of waste management legislation. Landfill audits will be carried out during February and the results will be published in the organisation’s landfill audit report at a later stage.

Since the start of this project in 2014, AfriForum has observed annually how little municipalities comply with the requirements of the relevant waste management legislation and that there is a lack of accountability for proper waste management, monitoring and licensing at local authorities. AfriForum is of the opinion that if these problems are not urgently addressed, it could lead to a complete collapse of waste management.

The looming waste management crisis facing South Africa, which AfriForum has repeatedly highlighted, already has serious implications for Gauteng. Experts in the waste management industry have come to the alarming conclusion that Gauteng’s capacity to dump refuse on landfills will be exhausted within a maximum of five years. This is due to poor management of existing municipal landfills, the limited remaining space on these sites and virtually no prospects or suitable locations for new landfills in Gauteng.

“The government’s failure to properly manage existing landfills, implement sustainable waste management practices and plan the development of new sites means that communities are increasingly exposed to illegal dumping, pollution and the associated health risks,” says Marais de Vaal, AfriForum’s advisor for Environmental Affairs. “With AfriForum’s landfill audit, we want to foster cooperation between communities and the three spheres of government with the aim of achieving positive change in the management of waste in South Africa.”

In addition to the watchdog function that AfriForum exercises through the landfill audit project, AfriForum also makes tangible contributions to solving the garbage crisis by, among other things, running a successful recycling project in Centurion and a refuse removal service in Bloemfontein. These initiatives will be extended to other towns in 2025.