The City of Johannesburg implemented mandatory recycling as of 1 July. We take a look at the basics of recycling and what you can and can not recycle.
Firstly, when you recycle, remember to rinse the material of any food or other products. If a recyclable is contaminated, it will likely end up on a landfill site anyway.
As for garden refuse, do not simply toss it in the bin. Residents can take this to their nearest Pikitup garden centre –find yours here.
This is also part of mandatory recycling and is used to manufacture products like compost.
Residents should only put dry recyclable waste in their recycling bags.
These include:
- Paper – newspapers, magazines, books, printer paper, cardboard, cartons
- Plastics – carry bags, beverage bottles, milk bottles, plastic toys, plastic containers
- Metal – beverage cans, food cans, metal dishes, metal pots
- Glass – glass bottles, glass jars, glass cups, glass containers.
If residents want to dispose of electronic waste like computer parts, electrical wires, and so forth, they can take them to a drop-off point found at various retailers. Often these retailers even have bring-back schemes.
Builders’ rubbles should be taken to the nearest garden site (with a maximum of one bakkie-load per resident per day) or be landfilled. These can be used as fill material during construction.
Bulky waste like furniture or large appliances can be disposed of in the same way as builders’ rubble.
As for wet waste or food waste, these are used for alternative waste treatment technologies and even be used to generate electricity.
