According to Selcourt residents a waste bin in the parking lot behind a local business regularly overflows.
Roy and Dorothy Phillips are pensioners who live directly behind the business. They say they can’t bear the stench of it anymore.
“It’s been over a year that we’ve been having this problem,” says Roy.
He says he went to the business owners about five times and asked them to remove the waste material.
“I can’t even breathe in my own garden.”
Roy adds that the waste material also attracts vagrants who relieve themselves at this site and add to the stench.
“It used to be lovely here on a summers day, but the hotter it is, the more stench there is,” he says.
Anne Nolan, another resident living in the area, says she suffers from asthma and the pollution in the air is adding to her problems.
“We’ve come across a few rats in our homes and one of our other neighbours has two young children, one who is one year old,” says Anne.
The residents also say the litter lying on the ground and on top of the overfilled bin gets blown into their pools and gardens and they have to clean it up on a regular basis.
They also say they fear it may be a health risk to them and the children.
Themba Gadebe, spokesman for Ekurhuleni metro, says perishable foods that have been in the bin for more than a week can become a health hazard.
“The refuse removal is done by the Waste Management Services according to a specific schedule and the bin is collected at least once a week or on an increased frequency on request of the owner,” he says.
An inspection that was carried out last Thursday revealed that the bins are not yet full.
“The Waste Management Services are currently investigating the possibility to implement revised service delivery methods to ensure that perishable wastes are being dealt with in a manner that will eliminate the risk of nuisances being created.”
Gadebe adds that the owner of a business should ensure that the waste generated on his/her premises is kept in a way that does not become a nuisance to the residents.
