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I, Bomo Edith Edna Molewa, Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs, Hereby Publish the Draft Municipal Waste Sector Plan In

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I, Bomo Edith Edna Molewa, Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs, Hereby Publish the Draft Municipal Waste Sector Plan In GENERAL NOTICE __________________________________________________________________________ DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS NOTICE 2011 DRAFT MUNICIPAL WASTE SECTOR PLAN I, Bomo Edith Edna Molewa, Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs, hereby publish the draft Municipal Waste Sector Plan in the schedule hereto, for public comment. Interested and affected parties are invited to submit written comments within sixty (60) days of publication of this Notice to The Director-General, Department of Environmental Affairs, Private Bag x447, Pretoria, 0001. Or Hand deliver at 2 nd floor North Tower, Fedsure Forum Building, 315 Pretorius Street, Pretoria, 0001. For attention: Mrs. Khashiwe Masinga, e-mail: [email protected] or fax: (012) 322 5515. The draft Municipal Waste Sector Plan can be accessed at www.sawic.org.za Comments received after the closing date may not be considered. BOMO EDITH EDNA MOLEWA MINISTER OF WATER AND ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS SCHEDULE ADDRESSING CHALLENGES WITH WASTE SERVICE PROVISION IN SOUTH AFRICA DRAFT MUNICIPAL WASTE SECTOR PLAN JANUARY 2011 Executive Summary This report provides a summary of the current status of waste generation and waste service backlogs at district municipality level. It further provides an overview of the waste sector including the roles and responsibilities of all the different players including the different spheres of government and the private sector. A Vision for the waste sector in line with the National Environmental Management: Waste Act, 2008 is provided including some strategic goals and objectives specifically aimed at addressing the backlogs in waste service delivery. In this regard some interventions and actions required to address the backlog are highlighted. The report further includes indicators and targets for addressing the backlogs and presents an action plan aimed at meeting the overall waste service delivery target, namely, to provide waste collection services to all urban households and dense settlements in South Africa on a sustainable basis. i Glossary Buy-back Centre Centre where people sell recyclable material they have collected. Recycling companies buy recyclable materials from buy-back centres and pay only for materials they can use. Composting Facility Facility for the aerobic decomposition of biodegradable organic matter to produce compost. Drop-off Centre Centre where recyclable materials are dropped off by consumers without receiving payment for the materials. Landfill Site Site for the controlled disposal of waste materials. Materials Recovery Facility Specialised plant that receive, separate and prepare recyclable materials for marketing to end-user manufacturers and/or recycling companies. Transfer Station Facility where waste is temporarily stored, and ideally sorted, before it is transported more economically to either recycling centers or landfills. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Executive Summary ............................................................................................................................... i Glossary ................................................................................................................................................. ii 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1 1.1 The context ......................................................................................................................... 1 1.1.1 Waste generation ................................................................................................... 1 1.1.2 Waste service backlogs .......................................................................................... 2 1.1.3 Infrastructure backlogs and availability of information ........................................ 4 1.2 Legal and Institutional framework for the sector ............................................................... 4 1.2.1 The history of the current system .......................................................................... 4 1.2.2 Waste institutions .................................................................................................. 5 1.2.2.1 National Government ............................................................................ 5 1.2.2.2 Provincial government .......................................................................... 6 1.2.2.3 Local Government................................................................................. 6 1.2.3 Legal framework ................................................................................................... 7 1.3 Composition of the sector ................................................................................................... 8 2 Vision and mission for the sector ............................................................................................ 11 3 Objectives and Priorities for the Municipal Waste Sector.................................................... 11 3.1 Strategic objectives ........................................................................................................... 11 3.2 Performance Indicators and Targets ................................................................................. 12 3.2.1 Objective 1: Waste Reduction ............................................................................. 12 3.2.2 Objective 2: Appropriate disposal ....................................................................... 12 3.2.3 Objective 3: Municipal waste service delivery .................................................... 13 3.3 Priority areas for activity .................................................................................................. 14 3.3.1 Reducing the quantities of waste disposed to landfill ......................................... 14 3.3.2 Financing and charges for waste services ............................................................ 15 3.3.3 Institutional issues ............................................................................................... 15 3.3.4 Raising the profile of waste management at political level ................................. 17 3.3.5 Improved data and information ........................................................................... 17 3.3.6 Waste separation at source .................................................................................. 17 3.3.7 Phasing out of salvaging at landfills .................................................................... 18 3.3.8 Suitable land for landfills .................................................................................... 18 3.3.9 Optimising waste collection systems ................................................................... 18 3.3.9.1 Awareness creation ............................................................................. 18 3.3.9.2 Capacity building ................................................................................ 19 3.3.9.3 Maintenance ........................................................................................ 19 3.3.9.4 Holistic planning ................................................................................. 19 3.3.9.5 Enforcement ........................................................................................ 20 3.3.10 Poverty eradication .............................................................................................. 20 4 Infrastructure ............................................................................................................................ 20 4.1 Transfer stations ............................................................................................................... 21 4.2 Materials recovery facilities ............................................................................................. 21 4.3 Buy-back centres .............................................................................................................. 22 4.4 Drop-off centres ............................................................................................................... 22 4.5 Unit standards for waste service delivery ......................................................................... 22 5 Human resource requirements ................................................................................................ 23 5.1 Landfill operation ............................................................................................................. 25 6 Action plan ................................................................................................................................ 25 6.1 Monitoring and reporting ................................................................................................. 25 7 References .................................................................................................................................. 28 Appendix 1 Action Plan for addressing the waste services backlogs ................................ 32 iii 1 Introduction In an attempt to fast track service delivery in South Africa, Cabinet directed that all sector departments should account for all service backlogs and based on this information, develop sector plans to address the backlogs. Therefore, the Department of Environmental Affairs as a sector department dealing with waste management, commissioned a study in 2007 which assessed the status of waste service delivery at local government level, including the availability of capacity to deliver this service.
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