Bonteheuwel has been hit by a wave of post-festive-season illegal dumping.
Abie Clayton, chairman of the Community of Bonteheuwel Association, said no sooner would the municipality clean an area than it would be dumped on again. And the problem was worse now because people were clearing out their homes after the holiday and paying drug addicts to clean their yards and dump the refuse anywhere.
“Old furniture, cabinets, pieces of wood, food, and all sorts of items are being dumped,” he said. “People just don’t care, they take no pride in their area. Even if you confront them, they don’t care.”
The worst dumping was in Jakkelsvlei Avenue, Bramble Way, Blombos Street and Kersboom Street, he said.
Bonteheuwel resident Sandra Malan said residents’ many efforts over the years to keep the neighbourhood clean had failed, and they didn’t know what to do anymore.
“All sorts of things are being dumped,” she said. “We need to stand together to stop this. Some people give the guys R5 to dump their rubbish.”
Bonteheuwel ward councillor Angus McKenzie said the area had been dump-free for a while, but the dumping had returned with the new year as people appeared to be getting rid of rubbish they had accumulated while being home-bound during the holidays.
Some companies had also tried to dump truckloads of refuse in the area but residents had reported them, he added.
People shouldn’t just let anyone dump their rubbish, believing it would be carted to the municipal dump, he said.
“In the last financial year, we spent nearly R200 000 trying to get rid of dumping through the emptying of skips, pamphlet distribution, awareness campaigns, and still people are dumping illegally.”
On Monday January 11, the City said there would be delays in refuse collections.
“Every effort is being made to ensure that refuse is collected on the scheduled day. However, should this not be possible, residents should take their bins in at 9pm and bring them out again the following morning at 6am. If not collected on the scheduled day, it will generally be collected the following day. In exceptional cases, where even this is not possible due to various issues, residents should please bring their bins out every day until it is collected (including Saturdays and Sundays).”
Residents should not resort to illegal dumping if the delays caused refuse to build up, and, where possible, should practise home composting and recycling to create more space in their wheelie bins, the City said.
“Residents should also consider separating their recyclables – glass, paper, cardboard and plastic, etc. These can be taken to one of the City’s drop-off facilities.”