EThekwini awarded blue flag status
EThekwini has been awarded Blue Flag status for two of its beaches.
DURBAN beaches are among the safest, cleanest and well-maintained in South Africa. This is according to the international Blue Flag programme, after they awarded two beaches in the City with full Blue Flag status on 6 October.
The Blue Flag programme announced that uShaka beach and Westbrook beach received the full Blue Flag status, while the Umhlanga main beach, Umgababa, Umdloti main beach, Umdloti tidal beach and Brighton beach received the pilot status flag. The pilot status is a stepping stone towards reaching the full Blue Flag status.
Mayor, Councillor James Nxumalo, said this is a great achievement for the City, especially around this time of the year as the busy festive season approaches. He said the Blue Flag status will be a positive boost for the economy.
“Our beaches are consistently well-maintained, which is why they are great tourist attraction sites,” said Nxumalo.
A Blue Flag is an international award given to beaches, boats and marinas that meet excellence in areas of cleanliness, safety and environmental standards. In South Africa, this programme is managed by the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa. This is South Africa’s 13th year of running the Blue Flag and it was the first country outside Europe to join the programme.
Nxumalo condemned the littering on City beaches and appealed to holiday-makers and residents to use the receptacles provided and become responsible for their waste and the environment. He appealed to residents and holiday-makers to be responsible and keep the city and beaches clean at all time.
“A positive attitude can transform the social ills, poor economic and environmental conditions in our city. It takes a concerted effort from all stakeholders to keep a city clean and we all must become ambassadors of our beautiful city. A clean environment leads to a positive attitude and better quality of life. This positive approach attracts investments, which enables growth and job creation,” said Nxumalo.
Durban was a hive of activity at the weekend when hundreds of holiday-makers made their way to the city to enjoy some of the tourist attractions, including the beachfront.
As a result, there was an accumulation of refuse at the city’s beaches.
“Over the weekend, municipal cleaning staff members have been working tirelessly to clean up the refuse. The city had a staff complement of 40 workers who were on duty for the day and night shifts,” said Nxumalo.
He said the City implemented its Clean and Maintain My City campaign in 2014, where it called on all residents, business and holiday-makers to dispose of their waste responsibly. Nxumalo said daily clean-up operations were continuing across all wards in the city; however, keeping and maintaining a clean city was everyone’s responsibility.
“This campaign should be at the top of every citizen’s agenda. Whether you are involved in the local business community, active in your neighbourhood or interested in cleaning up and greening your environment, your efforts are essential to our shared success,” added Nxumalo.
Measures have been put in place to control this unacceptable behaviour in future. With the implementation of the Nuisance and Behaviour in Public Spaces By-Law 2015, hopefully this can be kept under control.
Chapter 4 of the Nuisance and Behaviour in Public Spaces By-Law states that no person may, within a public place, deposit, dump or discard any waste or litter in a manner that detracts from the cleanliness of such public place or which causes a nuisance, and anywhere other than in a receptacle provided by the municipality for that purpose.
The chapter also states that no person may permit any waste or litter from any land or premises to be discarded, dumped, stored, kept or disposed of in such a manner that such waste or litter causes a nuisance. The proposed fine for littering is R1 000; however, this amount still has to be approved by the chief magistrate. Once approved, the amounts will be made public.
The by-law will come into effect in the first part of 2016. This interim period will allow Metro Police officers to be trained to effectively enforce it. Other transgressions covered in the by-law include consuming alcohol or being intoxicated in a public place.
