3.2 Waste Avoidance and Reduction

Waste avoidance and reduction is the foundation of the waste hierarchy and the most emphasized step in the waste minimisation process. While waste reduction is hard to quantify, current available figures indicate that waste quantities (as a proxy for waste avoidance) are on the increase.

Waste reduction occurs largely through producer responsibility initiatives implemented by industry on a voluntary basis. At municipal level there has been very limited progress in implementing measures for waste reduction at household level. This is largely as a result of competing priorities for municipal services, and the broader capacity challenges faced by municipalities.

The NWMS will elaborate a programme of measures to accelerate waste reduction, which will be consolidated into a national waste minimisation programme. These measures will include, but will not be limited to:

• Setting norms and standards for waste minimisation. The Waste Act includes a discretionary provision for national norms and standards relating to waste minimisation. Government needs to consider the feasibility of norms and standards for waste minimisation as well as the precise products, activities or services to which these should apply.
• Including targets and measures for waste avoidance and reduction in industry waste management plans. Targets for waste minimisation for all the main industrial sectors will be developed progressively over five years, in line with the roll-out of provisions for industry waste management plans.
• Incorporating waste reduction principles into the design and packaging of products at the point of manufacture. This is considered to be more efficient than focussing on post-consumption responses, where the majority of current initiatives are focused. A balance must be found between encouraging design and packaging changes at the point of manufacture, whilst maintaining the momentum of current post-consumer initiatives.
• Encouraging and incentivising municipalities to implement waste reduction measures and campaigns. Performance targets for waste reduction need to be developed for municipalities in terms of their integrated waste management plans, based on the specific capacity of each municipality. It order to incentivise municipalities, it is proposed that government expand the “Cleanest Towns” Campaign to further encourage waste reduction at a municipal level.
• Reconsidering the current pricing of waste disposal so as to build in incentives for waste minimisation by consumers. Current tariff structures of municipalities fail to incentivize waste reduction.
• Implementing public awareness campaigns around waste minimisation including education and awareness campaigns for households and consumers.

Each of the measures will be further elaborated upon in the following chapter.