Johannesburg - There has been much confusion surrounding Pikitup’s separation-at-source project with many media houses and social media platforms stating that this became compulsory across the city from July 1.
That was, in fact, not correct, said member of the mayoral committee for environment and infrastructure, Nico de Jager.
Although all residents were urged to separate their waste, it would become mandatory only in the areas it had been rolled out to.
“Although July 1 marked an increase in the tempo of a campaign, which has been in slow motion since 2009, separation will be phased in at a much faster rate with education and awareness campaigns,” he said.
Failure to separate waste at source in the affected suburbs would be an offence.
In the affected areas, Pikitup would continue providing a plastic bag, a clear plastic bag or a blue plastic bag that must be used for recycling plastic, paper, metal and glass. Pikitup would not provide a plastic bag for garden waste - residents were expected to take the garden waste to garden sites as they had been doing all along. That applies to areas that had traditionally been high generators of garden waste.
The bags would be collected by special Pikitup trucks or its appointed service providers, or appointed waste-pickers. Recyclable materials would be sorted and sold to recycling companies.
De Jager said there had been discussions with waste-pickers and other industry players.
He said there were problems in the areas where the project was in force and that communication with residents had been poor.
“I have seen Pikitup workers collect bags which should have been left for the recycling company. Workers throw these bags into the Pikitup truck, when it was intended for a separate vehicle. I have even seen waste-pickers take entire bags of recyclables and throw these into their trolleys. This results in no replacement bags for the households who are conscientiously recycling.
“The message to residents in in affected areas is simple and clear but it has not always been effective. Nor have the means of communication been adequate.
“The consensus is that there is more than enough recyclable material in the city for all stakeholders and this is born out by the fact that almost 90% of all waste goes to landfill sites.”
Pollutants classified as hazardous waste should be taken to drop-off points provided by various retailers.
* Details of the affected suburbs will be available at Pikitup depots and on the Pikitup website: www.pikitup.co.za.