Interwaste in the spotlight again as stench grips parts of Midrand

The landfill accepts general municipal, domestic, commercial and industrial waste for disposal, smaller quantities of delisted hazardous waste (which is a rulemaking procedure to amend the list of hazardous wastes to exclude a waste produced at a particular facility) and Type 2, 3 and 4 waste which is regarded as moderate to very low-risk.

Read Residents complain about Interwaste landfill in Glen Austin

Some residents have alleged that every morning and evening they are assaulted by a stench which affects their health and the well-being of animals and birds in the area. They also claimed to have experienced nausea, skin rashes and constant coughs, among other symptoms, due to the chemical smell and air pollution from the leachate dam which catches the liquid that is formed and drains out of a landfill site.

Stephen Pretorius and Christelle James, who live directly opposite the landfill’s entrance said the smell had become worse. “There is a common complaint amongst residents of respiratory issues and having to tape windows and doors shut to try to stop the smell from entering homes,” said Pretorius.

Sandy Harvey of Tranquility Rescue Centre for animals said the smell was not only affecting humans. “The horses are coughing so much due to the smell,” she said.

“The stench has become such an urgent concern for us.”

Bruce Beavers, chairperson of Sector 1 Community Policing Forum said, “The smell is disgusting, people are getting sick from it. Something must be done about it.”

CEO of Interwaste, Alan Willcocks, said the company took a responsible stance towards the environment and the well-being of communities was very important to them. “Interwaste is fully compliant with environmental standards and is committed to providing peace of mind for all residents that live within the vicinity of our landfills,” he said.

“We will be taking additional precautionary measures to monitor and eliminate any concern that the landfill may be hazardous to residents’ health, and to that of any animals and livestock.”

Willcocks explained that Interwaste had taken measures to mitigate any smell which may emanate from the landfill, and all waste was rigorously assessed prior to acceptance and then again on arrival at the site. All non-compliant waste was rejected.

The site is audited by independent external auditors biannually and residents who form part of the site’s monitoring committee are informed of the findings of such audits. At the most recent monitoring committee meeting, residents were informed of the processes being undertaken to address concerns about the odour.

These processes were:

•  Installed permanent aerators in the leachate dam onsite and implemented air quality monitoring
•  Installed a gas collection and extraction tool to monitor landfill gas production and quality
•  Monitored both upstream and downstream borehole water onsite for the past 10 years to ensure the landfill has no effect on the ground water, and so that contamination does not take place. The ground water was found to be unaffected by the landfill operation
•  Made sure that onsite weather station monitoring also monitors wind direction, temperature and rainfall
•  The FG Landfill is fitted with a state-of-the-art Class B landfill liner which complies with the very latest in environmental legislation, and has an international OHSAS 18001 accreditation [an international health and safety standard based on best practice].

Over the next month Interwaste will:

•  Sponsor autopsies on any animals or birds that perish either on or off their property, within a radius of 3km, to ascertain the cause of death
•  Appoint an occupational health professional, on nightly standby for the next six weeks, whom residents may call for air quality sampling to ensure objective testing
•  Subject to their consent, testing will be undertaken on Interwaste staff onsite to demonstrate the impact, if any, of human contact with the landfill gases
•  Immediate air quality monitoring will be undertaken both at the site perimeter and at variable distances of the site
•  Weather conditions will be recorded and the results compared with the time, location and frequency of complaints. This will provide a useful tool for assessing the source of the odour, given that there are a number of other potential sources of nuisance in the area including sewerage, a hazardous waste incinerator and illegal dumping by external parties
•  Once all results have been obtained regarding the above, Interwaste will hold an extraordinary monitoring meeting at which time the results will be communicated and any concerns addressed accordingly
•  Set up a response line which residents may call with any queries or concerns. Details will be provided when it is up and running.

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