The 2005 Western Cape Cleanest Town Competition is entering its final phase towards rewarding good waste management practices in the province. Contested by all 24 local municipalities for the coveted prize of cleanest town in the Western Cape, winning this prestigious award automatically allows entry into the national competition for the ultimate cleanest town in South Africa. Having announced the competitions' 3rd consecutive run since its inception in 2001 during September last year, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning Minister Tasneem Essop emphasised that the focus of the competition is the effective utilisation by municipalities of available resources.
Aimed at changing attitudes by raising awareness, and educating our nation towards environmentally friendly waste management practices, the competition is a vehicle to encourage South Africans to pro-actively participate in the moral regeneration of their communities. This will be done by re-introducing pride and commitment to clean up our environment. More than 50% of South African communities, especially in townships, rural and informal areas do not have access to a proper waste collection system.
During the week of 21 to 25 February, the evaluation panel for the competition visited municipalities located within the district municipalities of Breede Valley, Central Karoo, Eden and Overberg. Having tapped into the environmentally related expertise of various Departments, such as Health, Water Affairs and Forestry and the Fairest Cape Association, the panel has positioned itself as a transparent and unbiased adjudicator. This is especially a challenging task, because municipalities that are simply outstanding in certain areas have to be evaluated against some municipalities where room for improvement certainly exists. Yes, some municipalities are truly way beyond expectations and have introduced state of the art facilities to manage waste disposal most efficiently. Waste disposal however is but one of a number of steps utilised in waste management that are looked at.
All in all consistent improvements in waste management initiatives were noted, while certain municipalities still need encouragement to improve their waste management services. Recycling and waste minimisation still do not receive the required attention in the entire waste management cycle. For example, chipping of garden refuse to become compost can contribute significantly towards integrated waste management. Adding to that, a ton of recycled soft drink cans equals 30 000 cans of soft drinks which provides the ideal opportunity for entrepreneurship. Highly disturbing though was the dumping of abattoir waste at dumpsites not designed for this kind of waste. Of great concern was the incidence of squatters on dumpsites, scavenging for food and battling to survive. Not only does this pose a serious health hazard to those people, but accompanying children also do not attend schools, and have no access to proper health care.
Some municipalities however showed a decline in their waste management services, indicating either no interest in the competition or a disregard for environmentally friendly waste management practices. Said that, the Cleanest Town Competition does not focus merely on activities specifically designed to suitably impress the evaluation panel, but assesses the municipalities according to waste management related activities aimed at improving the environment for its inhabitants. Since entry into the competition requires no additional spending from a municipality, everyone is evaluated on merit, notwithstanding budget deficits and or external influences beyond control.
For more information on the Cleanest Town Competition, phone Russell Mehl on 021 483 2752, or email rmehl@pgwc.gov.za
