The South African Local Government Association (Salga) in the Northern Cape, in collaboration with Sol Plaatje Municipality, Magareng Municipality, Frances Baard District Municipality, and Phokwane Municipality, has launched an extensive illegal dumping clean-up campaign to educate communities about the harmful effects of illegal dumping.
THE SOUTH African Local Government Association (Salga) in the Northern Cape, in collaboration with Sol Plaatje Municipality, Magareng Municipality, Frances Baard District Municipality, and Phokwane Municipality, has launched an extensive illegal dumping clean-up campaign to educate communities about the harmful effects of illegal dumping.
Sol Plaatje executive mayor and Salga provincial executive committee member Kagisho Sonyoni emphasised that the campaign aims to improve the living conditions of residents and beautify their living spaces.
“Through this campaign, we want to highlight the hygiene implications that illegal dumping has for our residential areas. It also provides a breeding ground for unwelcome rodents and dangerous reptiles such as snakes. We want residents to take pride in their living spaces and to ensure that they keep those spaces clean. It also plays a vital part in preserving our environment and eliminating air and land pollution,” said Sonyoni.
As part of the initiative, the campaign focused on cleaning the ABC Cemetery this week. Sonyoni noted that significant progress has already been made since the campaign’s launch on Monday.
“The campaign was launched on November 11, 2024, and thus far we have already collected large quantities of litter, including 133 bags of waste comprised of paper, diapers and plastic, 24 bags of recyclable polyethene terephthalate bottles, and 16 bags of glass bottles collected from in front of different taverns.”
He added that the campaign also includes door-to-door environmental education to raise awareness among residents about the importance of maintaining clean living spaces.
Sonyoni announced that the campaign would continue within the Sol Plaatje Municipality. “We will visit different wards at least twice a month to clean any litter. This will ensure that wards remain clean,” he noted.
He called on community members to play their role in the fight against illegal dumping.
“Community members need to hold each other accountable. They should not just sit back and watch when their neighbours dump litter or other objects in the streets. Residents must have zero tolerance for illegal dumping and for those who are guilty of such practices.
“Municipalities will be fighting a losing battle if residents continue to litter in spaces the municipalities are trying to keep clean. It is not just the responsibility of the municipalities to ensure our people live in humane conditions, but residents also need to play their part,” Sonyoni concluded.
