Our People Plants and Cattle our Suffocating
Draft Report 22 November 2021
Our land is naturally beautiful
Everything was arranged, everything was in order in its place.
Now whatever that was underground was dug up by the mines and brought on top
Now we struggle to breathe, and our plants are suffering.
I can’t rest because of mining and the waste that development brought
We hear the land saying:
how will I look in the next 10 years.
I have been created in a balanced way so that I can give life,
Will plants and people and living things continue to live.
It seems that some people are competing with the creator.
The Creator created everything knowing that everything must be in place
but now things are rearranged.
Mmabore Mogashoa
GaMogashoa Ditlhakaneng
Introduction
This is our investigation report into problem of waste management in our community .We are activists who live in Sekhukhune.
In Sekhukhune there is a serious problem in the villages, there is a lot of waste dumping. Every corner where you go there plastics, baby diapers, tins , sharp objects such as broken bottles. Everything that is being used is being thrown everywhere. You will find waste also in the rivers in the dongas , under the bridges . They are all filled bottles, diapers , dead animals, plastics.
This waste gives off a terrible smell and can affect the health of the people. Waste block bridges and block water from flowing flow as bridges control water flow and even with dongas , if they fill up they can cause problems for houses nearby .
Animals eat plastic and this might kill the animals because plastic is not easy to be digested.
Water and soil is contaminated and this affects the flora and fauna. Dumping waste in rivers adds to the pollution from mining operations.
When we plant our plants, our crops absorb the chemicals or whatever else is in the water. Our rivers also have don’t have frogs, meaning that the waste is affecting the living things in the water.
The cause of this problem is that the municipality has not set up a proper waste management plan. The municipality does not collect waste in our villages in the way they collect waste in the few wealthy suburbs near the towns. Our villages are left to suffer the consequences of having waste being dumped around them.
People need education about waste. They need to what where and when to dump. Wt is safe to burn certain items or not.
Municipal councilors tell us that they have no budget to provide a waste management service . We are not sure if this is correct. We have heard of municipality wasting money . We have also heard of corrupt practices,
This means that the Municipalities are going against Section 24 of our constitutions which says that we have a right to a safe and healthy environment. There are also laws that say that the municipality must provide a waste management sercie ,.
This shows that people living in poor rural areas are not taken seriously
Before mines came into our areas , with the big malls , and the increase number of workers working the mines , we did not have a waste proble,. Our grandparents led a simple life. They they planted their own food kept chicken and cattle and eat the food they produced. They did not have much electronic goods , plastics. Our mothers did not buy diapers for their babies and we did not have the number of shebeens and taverns that dumped bottles every where.
The shebeen owners that taverns, the mines the shop owners and malls do not work with the with people to see what is happening to the waste. Even the shopping centers don have enough dustbins where people can throw their waste. Only a few people who are selling on the streets keep their places clean.
We believe Mines, Malls , Spaza shops and municipality have a responsibly to work with the community to solve this problem.
We believe that they should place dumpsters in the village close to where people live, not on the R37 highway , which can only be reached by a few people living close by and those with cars.
We have a lot of unemployed young people in each village. They can be employed to collect bags from homes and take them to the dumpsters.
In this report
We present what we saw using our photographs and mapsWhat waste is dumpedWhere it is dumpedWe focus on big waste items, diapers and beer bottlesWe discuss the health problems of wasteWe present our interviewsWhat people in the community are thinking about this problemWe say what councillors are saying on this problemWe present a proposal for a community-controlled waste management system
For More Information SeeBackground Sekhukhune http://communitymonitors.net/2021/11/the-sekhukhune-district-municipality/On Mining – since it is the major economic activity in our areahttp://communitymonitors.net/2021/11/mining-in-sekhukhune/The law and regulations on waste management and the obligations of municipality to provide waste management systemsHow we did this investigation and what we learnt about community activists investigation using digital tools
Our Investigation into the Waste Problem in Sekhukhune
We went around our villages and took geo located pictured of the waste that is dumped because of the lack of a waste management system . This is what we found.
What waste was being dumped
We studied our pictures and listed the following waste items
Waste from the home useWaste from TavernsPlastic bottles for water, cold drink and juiceBeer BottlesPlastic body create containersGarden WasteCard board boxesTree branchesUse diapersElectronicRefuse bagsBroken televisionsMilk cartonsCar PartsFood cansBicycle tyresTraditional broomsCar PartsHair pieceDead AnimalsChicken FeathersDead live stockSpice containersDogsOld shoesBuilders WastePlastic wrappingsBroken glass from buildingsAsh from fire placeBroken floor tilesCough mixture bottlesConcrete blocksPlastic cooking oil bottlesPaper back for cementOld clothesBricksToothpaste containersMaterials used in tiling’sBiscuit packaging
We noticed that diapers and bottles were being dumped I large quantities
Where was the waste dumped
Dumping Diapers
We investigated the dumping of diapers since this was a big waste item
We found that dumping of diapers was a very serious problems. We saw large dumps of thousands of diapers . It takes 500 years for diapers to decompose whether dumped or buried
Diapers give off methane gas. Diapers pollutes the air , soil and water.
We estimate that 28 800 000 million diapers are dumped in the Sekhukhune every year . This is how we came to this figure
One child uses about 4 diapers a dayin 30 days it makes 120and in 12 months 1440 of diapers every year.There are 44877 under the age of 4 years which they are the once using diapers.If we halve this figure to 20 000 and multiply by 1440 , we get the figure of 28 800 000 million diapers in 12 months – which either burnt by families buried in back yards
The use of baby diapers has increased because people use disposable nappies in huge numbers. Nowadays we have young moms from age 15 upwards. According to statistics there are more Women south Africa and this means that babies that are born are so many.
None SABS approved diapers are affordable for everyone this lead to an increase of mothers using them.
We are now living in fear on what will happen the next 20 years since the use of diapers increasing every day and there no collection in the rural communities in Fetakgomo-Tubatse. We imagine the mountain of dirt in years to come which will cause the diseases that will affect human animals and environment badly.
Dumping Beer Bottles
We also investigated the large number of beer bottles we saw dumped.
The number of liquor selling outlets in our villages have increased they include retail shops and shebeens (Taverns)
There are a large number of taverns which have been set up to serve migrant workers. There is a lot of drinking in our villages among migrant workers and unemployed youth.
We estimate that each Tavern sells about 500- 700 glass bottles of beer a month.
They are required like the residents to use the dumpsters which are located on the main road ( the R37) . They don’t use these dumpsters because they are very far from their tavern in the village.
There is no recycling system
We spoke to Tavern owners . They said that 330 ml bottles are consumed more that the 750ml ones and you can see them in transparent, green and brown bottles all over. 750ml bottles are used when buying again but the 330ml bottles are not. A tavern owner explained that his customers prefer the non returnable 330ml bottle . He said that ffter sales and consumption of liquor, they (him and his employees) collect the bottles and put them in a hole dug next to the bottle store because the liqueur suppliers only collect the 750ml ones.
“ I sell alcohol and just making a living. I can’t control people not to litter anywhere, yes you may find bottles even along the streets. I collect only in my space after morning and put the bottles one side.”
Our investigation into Dumpsters
According to IDP only 5 areas have waste collection services ( Burgersfort, Ohrigstad,Praktiseer ,Steelport and Gapodile). These are the more wealthy surburbs from the old Apartheid South Africa
The rest of the areas (which where in the old “Homeland system” depended on a dumpsters or skip system,
Dumpsters are placed on the main road and residents are expected to place their waste here. Trucks then collect this waste.
So we investigated the dumpsters
Location of the dumpsters
We found that they were placed along the main road passing all villages – the R37There were only 9 dumpsters along the R37 road which is the main road that runs from one end of Sekhuhune to the other passing all the villages.These dumpsters were expected to serve the whole of the Fetakgomo-Tubatse Municipality the largest municipality in the Sekhukhune distrct a total population of 335 767 with a 83 199 households ( According to STATSA 2011.)The dumpsters that are located to R37 Monitors realized that it is where mines are based for example here is the areas where dumpsters are located and mines that are close by:Twickenham cross= Twickenham mineMarula cross= Marula mine, Mandagshoek cross= Dilokong mineModikwa cross= Modikwa mine.Steelport cross= SAMANCOR mineAnd the remaining 4 dumpsters where spotted in town.From Twickenham cross to Atok there’s no dumpsters and is about 35 km distance with many villages along the roads.Only residents who live close to the dumpsters use it. Most of the people live far away. The dumpsters are located far away from the where residents live . ( see our map below)
How do residents get to the dumpsters
People transport waste from homes to dumpsters using wheel barrows, which are usually full.At the Dumpster , which is high up , it is too difficult to tip the waste into the dumpsters the therefore they level the waste around the dumpsters. The Dumpsters are not user friendly.If people don’t have wheel barrows they use black plastic bags which they have to purchase themselves.
The condition of the dumpsters
The dumpsters always overflowing and there is a lot of waste around them,According to people who stays next to the dumpsters at R37 the smell is bad and pollution is high when rain and wind comes it takes everything back to the community some ended up in the river through erosion. All sorts of waste is found next to the dumpsters When the truck for collection comes they only take waste that is inside the dumpsters an leave the ones outside.People who stand close by sometimes burn this waste inside the dumpsters for them to be able to have space and avoid bad, smell and dirt.
Service Provider
From markings on the dumpsters it appears that this dumpster service is provide by a private contractor.
We are still to get information about this private contractor and the terms of the contract
Map
We mapped the dumpsters we found. This shows how far away it is for a resident to dump their waste.
https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/edit?mid=1aUe1nvTnfPEDOPgTqH0XlBVx_oJ80etR&usp=sharing
Health Problems and other dangers arising from dumping waste
We discussed the health and environmental problem arising from dumping
Cuts from Sharp Objectives
We see broken bottles all over the place , as well as tins with sharp edges , broken window panes and roofing tiles
They are dumped in places where people walking could get cut . Children play in these areas and pick up objects to play with, they are open to getting hurt.
Infectious diseases from certain items
Dumping of dead live stock , Disposals diapers which is found dumped in all areas .
They carry infectious diseases. It is said that even when it is dumped in a formal dumpsites it gives of methane gasses which contributes to global warming
Rats and other creatures grow in theses dumps and spread diseases.
Chemicals from Burning Waste
Burning is a common way of people disposing of waste in Sekhukhune. They burn stuff like plastics, disposal diapers .These have chemicals which can cause respiratory illnesses
Water pollution from waste
People dump on river banks. The waste carry items which can pollute the water Diapers can cause serious contamination of water. People and cattle in our community drink water from the rivers
Animals feed on dump sites
The mines broke down all traditional grazing areas. Peoples cattles (cows and goats) roam around looking for grass. They go to dumpsites where they eat plastic. We see many cows dieing, when they cut them up we see plastics in their stomach.
Sacred sites are destroyed by dumping
People dump in areas whivh are seen by the community as sacred sites
Burying waste
Most people dig holes and bury the waste . Some parts of the waste decay and nourish the soil however most items , such as plastics , boxes with chemicals, diapers , don’t decay. They contaminate the soil
Open dumping sites
People sometimes dump close to the houses where they live . This results in bad smells experienced by the families .
Strong winds spreads the dust and the dirt from the open dumps all around inot the yards of people .
Rats and other creatures increase in these areas . They carry diseases
Interviews with residents on dumping
We talked with our neighbours about the waste problems . This is what we learnt.
How people dump
Interview (2) neighbor,. They throw their households rubbish in the rivers, valley and on the side of the roads.Some put them inside a plastic and use wheelbarrow to move them to the nearest river, dongas and valley.Neighbors admits that their household rubbish is burned in order to get rid of their waste. Some say they dump their waste in the bushes.After cleaning their homes(especially after weddings, funerals etc) they identify a spot (mostly dongas and in the aloes surrounding their homes) and dump the waste. She said ‘villages are not like urban areas because here we do everything on our own e.g. water, roads and waste. We burn some of the things but the smell of the smoke is terrible for us and our neighbours so it is better if we dump them’. When I ask her if she knew the danger of dumping, she said no.
Why we dump every where
Our people do not have a choice but to litter anywhere, they throw bottles, diapers.
Dumping bottles
Some people do collect bottles to sell them in order for them to put food on the table.
On the Municipality
Our municipality does nothing in helping the community and they do not teach people about the harm and the consequences in the environment and only when it benefits them.In the rural areas there is still oppression by municipalities, they take all this services to townships and towns to please those who are rich.When I see people who clean the streets they only take away papers and leave the diapers and other waste. The municipality pay people (EPWP) to only remove the papers but they fail to remove this big hazardous waste.
On dumpster system
Neighbors- l spoke to Mrs.kodibona Lucy who responded by saying” we are willing to assist by cleaning and to stop using the valley and rivers to dispose diapers, only if municipality can provide big steel bins in our area close to our houses
On Diapers
I have managed to talk to the mother of 3 Years girl and 4 months baby boy.
Diapers is a very big challenge to us as mothers but on the other hand it saves us time and reduce chores. It is unfortunate that we don’t know where to dump the nappies if we can be given big bins and municipality collect it ones a week it will be better. ” said the mother of 2 kids.
Traditionally it is inhuman to take your kids waste and throw it everywhere but now our yards are full of holes with Diapers and we don’t know where to dump it anymore, the rivers and donga are our only options now. Our governments don’t care about our health. All they care about is elections and making their own pockets richAbout the project of collecting diapers, it will not be easy and rather start now by putting no dumping area sign on the rivers and introduce bins for collection but the Diapers that are already on the field it will be difficult to collect because people will expose themselves to diseases. For people to be safe suitable PPE(Personal Protective Equipment) is required.Every time she walks past the bridge, she sees passing cars and throw away the diapers under the bridge and in Mototolong is worse because they also throw everywhere because there’s a little bush. It is not good for health. Kids plays in the dongas and they might get sick because of this
Charging people for dumping
Mrs XXX Thinks that there must be a charge for people who dump in the river but first municipality must make sure that services like this are priorities.
Safety of children
. Children play malapalapana (indigenous games) they also in danger of getting contact with the waste. As for the bottles it is very dangerous because they can play with them and gets hurt.
Interviews with elderly people on disposing waste before the mines came
Our environment in the olden days was cleanPopulation was less and people were consuming food that they plant and indigenous ones found in their farms, yards, mountains and forests.Diseases were few because of the kind of life they were living and the food they were eating. They lived long and healthy.Waste was less because they had other ways of making them different e.g. meat was cut and dried. Nowadays food get rotten because of load shedding and dumpedThey had no plastics to package food.They built using material from land, not plastics and metals bought in the hardware storeTrees were cut only for use but nowadays people cut for fire and business. There was less soil erosion because yards were surrounded by trees and aloes that controlled water. Rivers, didiba, rain etc were the only source of water. Dry wood was only used for fire.Consumption have increased as a result of the ever-increasing population. This has increased demand, more products are produced, and lot of waste is created because of manufacturing, packaging and the lifespan of the product made.Climate change was never a problem because people have knowledge to respect nature. Nowadays things have changed and the challenges we face are frustrating and we are suffering because of the consequences of what we are doing to nature.Older people in the community did say that back then they did not have waste collection.They got rid of their waste by usually burning the waste or by making their own dumping place in their yard where by they dig a hole:she also added by saying the waste of nower days it’s different from back in their old days,the different being the fact that nowadays we have so many shop’s that uses many different kinds of packages.She also added by saying even now they still dig holes but within a month the hole might already be full.We were just dumping waste around sethobolo and burn them.The waste was much differ to actual, because much of their waste was rip from ploughing field like mahlaka, meoko and diponkies.we make a hole and burn it in that age we used old clothes as napkins instead of diaperswhen we’ll drink a beer we a come close and use one thing that call sego after is make sure is clean in put inside the house because is make by traditional thing
Old people were consuming food they were farming and hunting ie locusts, dikgagarapane, dinthlwa(big ants coming from ground after rain – November) there was less population because they were following culture unlike nowadays where our 12 year daughters bears children. They were also eating meat from livestock and tamed animals from the mountains and forests. Indegineous fruits and bulbs were also eaten. There was little waste or no waste because bones and skins of animals were used to create products. They knew importance of the environment and respected sacred placesNowadays we have different kinds of food and some have bad effect to health and environment.With the lockdown food placed in refrigerators get rotten.
Community Monitors Video on Life Before and After Mining In Sekhukhune
We talked to councillors and this is what they say
We talked with councillors about their views on the waste management problem .
On the existing system
Many admitted There’s no official Waste Management system.The councilor said that there was no system in rural area for waste collection at household but only workers who clean alongside roads and clearing the tree picking only papers and plastic leaving diapers, bottles and household waste.“that the isn’t a waste management system in our local area moving forward we are still waiting for the elections maybe there will be a difference”. We do have a plan in the Fetakgomo/Tubatse management plan. But we have a problem with code 14 drivers licence to drive the trucks.The municipality have only road workers to manage cutting of trees along the roads especially on nationalised roads.We don’t have any recycling equipment around rural community level.
Some councillors did not appear to talk to us
The one said – call me in 10 minutes I will give you an answer- when I called he did not answer
We did these interviews before the November 1 2021 Local government elections so many said that they could not give us a position
I am no longer on the voters roll better engage the person who is on voters roll The outgoing councillor said ” can you please draft your project plan before 1st of November so that we can convince the one standing for elections to place a big rubbish bin..With the councilor it has been difficult to question because recently the has been elections which a new councilor was appointed on hold.The ward council was engaged last month, she said the plan of the project should be drafted to see what and where to fix the problem on the 18th of November.This one also reserved for 18th oh November during Social Development meeting the have a office that work in waste management but because of budget everything are fail
Who is responsible?
We discussed this question and this is our view
The municipal council is by law responsible to make a waste management plan and to implement the planThe big supper markets as well as the spaza shops are also responsible because they make money buy selling goods wrapped in plastic , or they don’t collect the bottles and they sell diapersThe Mines are responsible , because they disrupted the traditional life of the community , they were responsible for the increase in population. They say they provide jobs and contracts and stimulate business , but for only a small section of the community .They pass the their costs on the community in this way by not paying more for services such as waste management.
The Law of the country on waste
The Constitution of South Africa, in the Bill of Rights in section 24 , Chapter 2, of our country says that we have the right to live in an environment that is not harmful to the health or well-being.Government has created law to say how waste management must be set up and controlled this is the National Environmental Management Act, 1998 (Act No. 107 of 1998) (NEMA).Municipality are required by this law to set up a integrated waste management plan and provide basic services related to cleansing and refuse removal, refuse dumps and solid waste disposal.
Links : https://www.gov.za/documents/national-environmental-management-act
Sekhukhune Waste Management System
The District municipality says that there is an Integrated Waste Management Plan . However in reality this is only for a few areas where more wealthy people live.
From our observation and what we have learnt in our interviews with residents , there is no waste management service
They provided few dumpsters , but these were located on the R37 far from were people lived, Many of these dumpsters are today abandoned
Ideas for a Community Initiative for a Waste Management System
We must talk to the Municipal Councilors and get them to make a proper plan and implement the plan. They must do this with education and consultation in the communities .
As monitors and activists we are prepared to cooperate on this
They say that it is too expense to have trucks going into every village, that is why they place dumpsters.
We must discuss this further to see if we agree with them
We believe that the community can play an important role to create a cheap waste management system . Here are our ideasPlace dumpsters in each village at a point agreed with the people in the villageMunicipal Trucks must collect waste from the dumpsters regularlyAll homes must be given a black plastic bag for general waste and green back for recyclable wasteA number of unemployed young people ( both male and female ) in each village should be employed to collect the bagsThey must be given a cart and PPEThey must be paid R250 per day or R3500 per month to do this workEach community or a group of young people wanting work can create a recycling project which the municipality should supportThe community should form a monitoring committee to see that they do they workThe municipality must train and pay young people in each area to do an education programme on waste management in the home and the communityWe should approach the two municipalities which we live in and ask them to support this ideaWhile we do that , in case this takes a long time , we should target a few villages , get the community to agree to a plan , approach businesses , spaza shops and mines to support pilot projects
The Community Monitors Programme and our Training Exercise
The Community Monitors
NameVillageMunicipalityMolin MoseamediAtok,Mogabane villageFetakgomo Tubatse MunicipalitySelowa Moshabi ((M)Atok,Monametsi villageFetakgomo Tubatse MunicipalityVictoria MakgooMorapaneng VillageFetakgomo Tubatse MunicipalityBoitumelo ThobejaneMototolong villageFetakgomo Tubatse MunicipalityDonald Mphethi (M)Ga-Kgwete villageFetakgomo Tubatse MunicipalityHappiness KomaMoshira villageFetakgomo Tubatse MunicipalityJohn Taulo (M)Mandagshoek villageFetakgomo-Tubatse MunicipalityEustine MatsepaneModimolle VillageFetakgomo-Tubatse MunicipalityMmathapelo ThobejaneDitwebeleng villageFetakgomo-Tubatse MunicipalityJulian Tsoka (M) Makganeng villageMakhuduthamaga MunicipalityKamogelo MogashoaMashengwaneng villageMakhuduthamaga MunicipalityMmabore MogashoaGa-Mogashoa villageMakhuduthamaga Municipality
The Community Monitors are 13 activists living in the Sekhukhune districtThey are participants in the BMF Community Monitors Programme . See the work of this programme here http://communitymonitors.net
The group consists of 8 women and 5 menThe Monitors are volunteers and unemployed.The Monitors live in two Municipalities (Fetakgomo Tubatse Municipality and Makhuduthamaga )Municipality) in the Sekhune District of which consist of four municpalities)_
Using Digital Tools to strengthen Activist’s work
The Monitors Activists Toolbox
As activists we use many TOOLS – ways to make our activism stronger. In the Monitors programme we have been developing TOOLS for activism. Here are some of them
Information gathering and analysis toolsPersonal Observation
We Observe, see for our self what the problem or opportunity is
Talk to people (Interviews)
We talk to people affected, people in charge, people who know more and get more information
Free Writing
We start with a Free Write to get all our thoughts on paper – quickly
Structured Writing
We use the questions What Where When Who, What is the Cause, Ideas for action to organise all the information we collected in a more structured way . This will hep in analysis.
Cell phone Pictures
We take Pictures to support our story
Communication ToolsWhatsApp,
We use WhatsApp to communicate our reports other activists
Website
We use the communitymonitors.net website to store our pictures as well as to make it available in the world
Social Media (FB)
We use FB to send our stories out to friends
BookletsWe publish our stories in booklets to that we can hand it out to people
Community Action ToolsPetitionsBlock and Mass MeetingsStrikesBoycottsActivists’ protests and Demonstrations, blocking streetsMedia advocacy (Interviews and reports in the pubic media)
Our Challenge : How can we use Digital Tools to strengthen our activism
The Cell Phone and the Internet is a very powerful instruction to gather information and to communicate this information. So we want to know how we can turn the cell phone and programmes on the internet into Activists tools
Example of a digital tools – emails, websites , FB. There are many “online’ on the internet – we which can use to get information communicate out information to other people
We are looking for tools that we can easily access and download on our smart phones
There very many tools – not all of them useful. We have to use them and adapt tools that help our work
New Tools : Digital forms
We can write down what we see and hear, but how can we bring togetehr5 what a 100 activists see and hear on a particular issue. Digital Forms could assist us in this
Activists complete the form and send it via email to a a central digital place – A digital spread sheet
Spread Sheets
A spread sheet is a lot of rows and columns which helps us say quickly – how many people said this and how many people said that.
It helps us analyse what the 100 activists are saying,
The spread sheet helps us to present this information in a way we can see clearly – information graphics
Information Graphics
This information graphs help us as activists discuss not only our own views but the Whole situation
Geo- located Pictures
We take pictures using our cell phones to show what’s happening. These pictures are digital , they can be sent on WhatsApp or email or place on FB. They are not Hard Copy pictures., If we activate our Location Setting on our camera ,our pictures carry information on when we took the picture and where we took the picture, The picture then becomes a report on its own and could be used as evidence.
We can also up load the picture on to a digital map – to show where the picture was taken and help us see where for example the river comes from , where the mines are located where communities are located.
A simple picture if geo located – can tell a very big story.
then can help us Map the activity . The map helps us to see the whole community and not the street on which we live .Geo Located Pictures – this is a picture we take on our cell phones – with out locations settings turned on. This picture can be mapped showing the exact spot where we took the picturte.
Digital Maps
It is now possible for each community to build up a map of their community and to post all their pictures and reports , so that we can see the problem as a whole and more clearly
