Being Green - 16 Apr 2021

This week in Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Alison Davison, Head for Waste Minimisation for the City of Cape Town, about a pilot project to divert organic waste from landfills. In South Africa, a third of the food produced is never consumed and 90% of it ends up in rubbish dumps. There it produces carbon dioxide and methane gas, which is even more devastating for the climate. The good news is that national government is responding to the challenge and in the Western Cape, the provincial government has set a target for a 50% diversion of organic waste from landfills by 2022 and 100% by 2027. In February the City of Cape Town launched a trial project, providing residents with 5 litre buckets which they can take home and use for their food waste. Participants then return them to one of eight designated sites across the city where the container will be decanted, cleaned and handed back. At the end of June, the City will then assess whether the programme has the potential for further rollout. To find our more you can speak to staff at one of the drop-off sites in Belhar, Killarney, Hout Bay, Woodstock, the CBD, Claremont, Durbanville, and Somerset West, or e-mail: re.cycling@capetown.gov.za.