A landfill with a difference:  eThekwini Municipality

2011/07/25

ICLEI member eThekwini Municipality, in South Africa's Mpumalanga Province, contains a number of landfill sites. The smallest now functions as a green lung for South Africa, with an entrance sign that reads: "Enjoy the birds and the animals in the grasslands, forests and wetlands"

Mariannhill Landfill Conservancy recognises the community’s general aversion to living near to a landfill that releases bad odours and spreads litter to surrounding suburbs.

With the use of an innovative 'Closed Loop System' and naturalistic engineering, Mariannhill Landfill simultaneously rehabilitates the site as it fills with waste. The result is a clean, odourless area.

Amongst various site improvement techniques, the municipality has implemented a Clean Development Mechanism: a gas to electricity project, which was the first of its kind in Africa.

Mariannhill also boasts a Plant Rescue Unit, which houses indigenous vegetation and soil replaced by landfill cells (kept for future use in rehabilitation projects) and a valuable educational destination for learners. Schools regularly visit the site to witness good waste management practices as well as the conservation of biodiversity.

It is hoped that the private sector will assist rural communities in learning from eThekwini Municipality and help to implement these practices throughout the country.

Information courtesy of Impumelelo.

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