Guidelines on recycling

Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.

You’ve heard the term before, but do you know how to recycle and where to recycle items such as old batteries, cellular phones or light bulbs? What do you do with used lubricating oil?

Pikitup has put waste minimisation initiatives in place to equip the public with knowledge in order to help care for the environment.

The biggest problem is making sure non-biodegradable items, such as plastic bags, plastic bottles, metals, glass and dangerous chemicals do not end up on landfill sites. If these items are dumped at a landfill site, they are generally diverted by reclaimers. “But, sometimes these items are missed and become part of the site. This is toxic to the environment and contributes to air pollution. This can lead to climate change issues,” said Palesa Rammitlwa, who is part of Pikitup’s Communications and Stakeholder Management Department.

Makro at Strubensvalley and the Pick n Pay Hyper at Princess Crossing have bins where you can drop off old batteries, cellular phones and light bulbs.

Pikitup also has garden waste sites available where they accept e-waste such as computers, printers and fridges. For information on your nearest garden waste site, visit www.pikitup.co.za.

If you have larger items, Pikitup’s bulky waste system can be used to collect them. The Bulky Waste Service removes bulky household waste once a month, free of charge. The aim of this service is to divert recyclable waste away from landfill sites, thus allowing them an extended lifespan. Residents who want to dispose of bulky waste from their households are urged to contact their nearest Pikitup depot or use the nearest garden waste site.

Environmentally acceptable collection, storage and recycling of South Africa’s used lubricating oil is managed by Pikitup, in partnership with The Rose Foundation. Oil can be recycled at various Pikitup garden waste sites.

Pikitup also supports buy-back centres where waste materials with an economic value are bought from the community and resold for a small profit. This does not only promote recycling but aids the unemployed, by providing employment and entrepreneurial opportunities.

Building contractors can dispose of building rubble and soil at certain Pikitup landfill sites at no cost. This is done to divert builder’s rubble away from landfill sites (except for the quantities of rubble required for use as daily cover material). This increases airspace and the lifespan of existing landfills. It was also introduced as a measure to combat illegal dumping, as rubble constitutes a significant amount of illegal waste dumped in Johannesburg.

Pikitup provides 108 individuals across the city with food packages in exchange for keeping designated areas clean. Through this project, Pikitup is encouraging recycling as a viable means of income generation in poorer communities.

To date, five illegal dumping sites have been converted into community food gardens. This project is run in partnership with City’s Community Development department.

All the garden waste sites in the Roodepoort are used as recycling points and accept most recyclable items from the community. The only waste not accepted at these sites is hazardous waste, such as batteries and light bulbs.

To ensure items are recycled correctly Pikitup encourages residents to do the following:

– Make use of the Separation@Source method. Pikitup supplies residents with recycling bags on a weekly basis. These can be collected, or dropped off at the Pikitup garden waste sites found across the city. Cooperatives and small enterprises are used to collect and sort the recyclable waste collected from households and businesses. This creates additional jobs, businesses and income for the unemployed residents within the city. You can play your part by putting recyclable materials (paper, plastic, cans, bottles and electronic waste) in allocated bins in public places, stores and garden waste sites. To see what material can be recycled, visit www.pikitup.co.za.

– Residents are encouraged to divide into groups and organise activities for Separation@Source. This includes cleaning up illegal dump sites.

– Make sure you have recycling bags. If they’re not delivered during refuse collection, collect from your nearest Pikitup depot.

– Contact your Pikitup depot for more information on Separation@Source and their other waste minimisation initiatives. Familiarise yourself with recycling guidelines.

– Encourage your neighbours and family members to participate in recycling.

– Visit the City of Joburg (CoJ) and Pikitup websites regularly to stay up to date with recycling guidelines and waste minimisation initiatives.

– Make sure you know about waste management, by taking more interest in what is happening to your waste and learning how to take care of the environment.

Do you perhaps have more information pertaining to this story? Email us at roodepoortrecord@caxton.co.za (remember to include your contact details) or phone us on 011 955 1130.

For free daily local news on the West Rand, also visit our sister newspaper websites Randfontein Herald, Krugersdorp News and Get It Joburg West Magazine

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