Illegal dumping ‘destroys’ look of high school
Ward councillor Dean Stone believes the principal of a local high school is unfairly taking the heat for illegal dumping on the school's pavements.
Stone says the principal of Eureka High School, Kobus van Zyl, goes out of his way to keep the school clean and takes it upon himself to remove the rubbish dumped by unknown people.
Stone explains that he contacted Waste Management Services himself to remove the building waste and multiple black bags that litter the pavement.
“They then told me that it is the responsibility of the school or Department of Education to remove the rubbish,” says Stone.
This apparently infuriated Stone as he says that the school cannot be blamed for dumping done by the community.
“This is not just a ‘few and far between’ occurrence, this happens every single week and the principle removes the rubbish every time at his own cost, but this is not fair and he cannot continue to do this much longer,” says Stone.
Stone adds that refuse removal is also a problem at the school as Waste Management Services allegedly charge them R130 per wheelie bin and Stone says the school needs at least 15 which amounts to a massive bill at the end of the month.
“The wheelie bin system will not work at institutions such as schools, it’s ridiculous to ask that of large institutions,” he says.
Themba Gadebe, spokesman for the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality, says that Waste Management Services are responsible for the removal of illegal dumping on pavements.
“On inspection on September 10 at 9.30am by officials of Waste Management Services, no bags were found,” says Gadebe.
He adds that illegally dumped building rubble and garden litter was found on the pavement, which will be removed by Waste Management Services as soon as possible.
Waste Management Services will investigate to determine the source of illegal dumping.
The public may also contact Waste Management Services on 011 999 8497 if they have any information on the source of illegal dumping.
“The culture of recycling must be encouraged in our communities,” adds Gadebe.
Recycling can also generate an extra income.
The Ekurhuleni tariff schedule was open for comment and afterwards promulgated.
The charge for institutions is lower than for businesses.
The less refuse put out for collection, the lower the monthly cost will be for the school.
