Illegal waste dumping by private persons as well as business owners has residents living near the Princess informal settlement seeing red.
Illegal dumping is a violation of the City of Johannesburg’s by-laws and those doing it face a heavy fine.
The by-laws on waste management are very clear on littering and dumping. By-law 35(1) states:
“No person may –
(a) cause litter;
(b) sweep any waste into a gutter, onto a road reserve or onto any other public place;
(c) disturb anything in, or remove anything from any receptacle which has been placed for the purposes of collecting litter in such a manner as to cause any of the contents of the receptacle to spill from it; or
(d) allow any person under his or her control to do any of the acts referred to in paragraph (a), (b) or (c). ”
In terms of By-law 36(1), “No person may deposit or permit the depositing of any waste, whether for gain or otherwise, upon any land or in any building of which he is the owner or occupier except if such deposit is made in accordance with the provisions of these By-laws.”
But the enforcement of these by-laws can only be done by the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD) officers if the perpetrators are known or caught in the act, that is why the help of the public in this regard is vital.
Melinda Bisset, operational manager of Environmental Health reminds residents that in order to catch the persons guilty of illegally dumping their waste, proof is needed.
“Residents can send me an email with a picture of the person dumping, a picture of the vehicle as well as the rubbish (very important), physical address or number plate, date and time of dumping. Give as much information as possible on what was dumped. Remember, pictures are vital,”she said.
This information can be emailed either to Bisset at MelindaB@joburg.org.za or to Sam Sethagu, director of JMPD By-laws at samse@joburg.org.za.
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