Wasting the Nation.indd - Groundwork

Chapter 3: The politics of wasteBox 5: UmlaziUmlazi, one of the largest black ‘townships’ in South Africa, is an integral part ofDurban but was incorporated into the KwaZulu homeland under apartheid. Waste-Tech’s hazardous dump was established in the 1980s under the lax jurisdiction of thehomeland government while operating as part of south Durban’s industrial economy.It was located on the border of Umlazi and the Indian area of Isipingo and constructedwithout so much as a lining. It leached toxic waste into the Isipingo River while thestench of its emissions filled the air and forced the repeated closure of a neighbouringschool.With the democratic transition, the dump fell under the authority of the DWAF andwas classified as a low hazard [H:h] dump. Faced with vociferous protest, the ministercalled for a forum to discuss its future. South Durban activists, however, demandedthat the dump be closed and refused to join the forum until it was agreed that the issueto be addressed was its closure. They made this the defining issue through sustainingprotest action on the streets rather than in negotiating chambers and by insistingthat their voice remain autonomous of government, with people defining the issuesand the terms of their participation. Hard evidence of DWAF’s collusion in illegaldumping of high hazard waste at the site strengthened their case and their resolve.Following the closure, the waste was diverted in three directions. Some was‘de-listed’ – treated and/or reclassified as non-hazardous – and sent to Durban’sBisasar Road municipal site. Some went to Waste-Man’s Bulbul Road H:h site, apoorly constructed dump in the Indian area of Chatsworth. Following heavy rainfall,the dump subsequently ‘slipped’, releasing toxic clouds into the air and a toxic floodinto the Umlazi River below. The remainder went to EnviroServ’s Shongweni dumpwhich the DWAF quietly upgraded from a general to a H:h landfill.Despite closure, a fourth stream kept coming to Umlazi. Even as closure was ordered,Waste-Tech dug out and lined a new cell at Umlazi. Across the valley, the Merebankcommunity was meanwhile fighting for the closure of Mondi’s toxic ash dump locatedon site at its south Durban paper mill and next to people’s houses. When they finallysucceeded, the DWAF allowed the ash to be dumped in the hole that had convenientlybeen prepared at Umlazi. The hole is now a mountain of ash and the final cappingand closure of the site commenced only in 2007. This coincided with the installationof a ‘multi-fuel burner’ – a euphemism for an incinerator – through which Mondiis recycling its ash along with other materials. This reduces the amount of ash butincreases its toxic load.Wasting the Nation - groundWork - 43 -