4.3 Waste minimization and waste recycling

4.3.(1)
Waste minimization and recycling has been one of three focal areas for the NWMS implementation project. The objectives of this component of the project were to increase and extend waste recycling in selected pilot areas; identify new waste streams for recycling; expand existing recycling initiatives and improve as well as implement new recycling initiatives; and identify and develop appropriate mechanisms to promote sustainable recycling by all members of the recycling chain. Several demonstration projects have been launched in a bid to boost waste recycling in the country.
 

4.3.(2)
A great achievement in respect to waste minimization was the introduction of the Plastic Bag initiative, which was also the first use of a tax instrument to effect a change in consumer and industry behaviour. In the revision of the NWMS, careful consideration will be given to whether this form of tax instrument has produced the desired result and whether it can be extended to other areas of waste minimization.
 

4.3.(3)
Another milestone has been the drafting of the Cleaner Production Strategy in 2004, although it is yet to be approved by Cabinet. The implementation of the strategy resides with the Department of Trade and Industry, which has overseen the establishment of the National Cleaner Production Centre with demonstration projects in three industries.
 

4.3.(4)
In terms of the demonstration projects, one of these has been the implementation of an Industrial Waste Exchange Pilot Project Programme, which aimed to develop an industrial waste exchange programme for the Sedibeng District Municipality (comprising three local authorities, i.e. Emfuleni, Lesedi and Midvaal), as a model for reducing industrial waste currently disposed to the permitted landfill sites or illegal dumps.
 

4.3.(5)
A second leg to the programme was an investigation of Extended Producer Responsibility as a mechanism for bringing about waste reduction in South Africa, through the minimisation, reuse and recycling of waste products. A key finding of the investigation was that there is no single universal model of Extended Producer Responsibility. The systems implemented internationally share no common set of goals, no uniform regulatory structure, and no comparable pricing schemes. Hence, an Extended Producer Responsibility process for South Africa would need to be developed on a product specific basis.
 

4.3.(6)
The research process concluded that the following groups of products should be prioritised for further investigation and implementation for extended producer responsibility: plastic bags (the plastic bag initiative and introduction of plastic bag tax in 2006); glass (the Memorandum of Understanding); waste tyres (the Memorandum of Agreement on Waste Tyres and establishment of a tyre levy); and e-Waste (Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment). The study also recommended that the experience gained and lessons learnt from the implementation of the Plastic Bag Initiative could be used to guide more effective and efficient implementation of future Extended Producer Responsibility initiatives for other products/commodities.
 

4.3.(7)
A third component of the recycling and waste minimization programme was the establishment of the Mbombela Recycling Pilot project to determine whether a recycling initiative could yield sustainable incomes for a co-operative comprising historically disadvantaged women. The project recently received funding from Buyisa-e-Bag to establish a Materials Recovery Facility, and it is too early to assess whether such a project is viable and replicable.