Final Adopted IDP - KZN Development Planning

Solid Waste Disposal
The Municipality operated its own waste disposal site but it was closed down because it
did not have the necessary authorisation and as a result of concerns raised by affected
communities that the site was in close proximity to households. The Zululand District
Municipality commissioned a Solid Waste Management Master Plan that was compiled in
June 2002 and is now out of date. It identified two potential solid waste disposal sites
within the service area of the Ulundi Municipality, one in Ulundi and the other in
Babanango, each with a potential life span in excess of 25 years. In April 2007 a study
commissioned by the District Municipality to investigate the establishment of a regional
landfill site under the control of the District Municipality recommended that the status
quo be retained. Nevertheless, from the perspective of the Ulundi Municipality it is
imperative that an alternative to the current solid waste disposal process be pursued,
the establishment of a regional landfill site being one possible alternative.
Access to a Refuse Removal Service
Household access to a refuse removal service within the Ulundi municipal area, based on
the information provided by the 2001 census and the Community Survey conducted in
2007 has been analysed. The following table illustrates the changes that have occurred:
Refuse Removal Services 2001 Census 2007 Community
Survey
Removed by local authority at least once a week 19.0% 20.5%
Removed by local authority less often 1.4% 2.2%
Informal refuse disposal 79.6% 77.3%
From the statistical information provided by the 2001 Census and the 2007 Community
Survey, respectively, there has been little change in the level and type of access to a
refuse removal service by the communities within the Municipality.
Refuse removal is currently limited to the urban areas of the Municipality; this service
is not available to the existing informal settlements and rural areas. As a consequence,
the majority of the population disposes of their own refuse in informal dump sites,
probably by burning it which impacts negatively on the sustainability of the environment.
The map attached reflects access to a refuse removal by the local authority at least
once a week per current ward in the Municipality, based on the information generated
from the Census in 2001
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