SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT MASTER CLASS

Transcription

1 SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT MASTER CLASS LESSONS LEARNED Wednesday, 21 May 2014 to Friday, 23 May 2014 Cleansing and Solid Waste Unit (DSW) Training Centre, 22 Electron Road, Springfield, Durban This learning note captures the lessons that emerged over the 3 day Solid Waste Master Class. The points captured highlight participant s reflections on the ethekwini experience and insights into the growth and development of the waste management industry in South African municipalities. DAY 1 DSW s key focus areas include the collection and transportation of domestic, commercial and industrial waste; the provision and management of receptacles (wheelie bins, skips, bags); the management and rehabilitation of landfill sites; street cleaning and litter removal; recycling; waste management awareness and education; research and development of new waste management processes and the processing of methane gas for other uses such as energy. Broadly, the three areas that were looked at on Day 1 included Education, Strategic Development and Community Contracts Development at ethekwini s DSW Unit. Education on Waste Management at DSW DSW s approach to education on waste management is carried out through Public Awareness Campaigns, the Clean and Maintain My City programme, the Adopt a Spot Programme, free landfill site tours, enviro-themed days, national clean up week, awareness branding on buses, school programmes and publicizing the consequences of illegal dumping. During the discussion session, participants agreed that official s undertaking sponsored research or assisted education in municipalities should ensure that their outputs or findings are USEFUL to the municipality. Benchmarking and visits to other municipalities would also assist in knowledge exchange and sharing. Officials must remember that Learning is not duplicating. Every municipality is unique. The key approach is to learn and not duplicate. We must be open to accepting constructive criticism on the pros and cons of our waste management systems. With regard to the Adopt a Spot programme, it has worked successfully in ethekwini Municipality. Through this programme, members of all sectors of community voluntarily

2 accept responsibility for the cleanliness of a designated area. In relation to landfill tours, it was noted that for the success and sustainability of the tours, they must be offered free of charge (i.e. Marianhill Landfill / Buffelsdraai). Strategic Development Policy, Governance, Strategic and New Developments at DSW DSW s Strategic Objectives cover a wide range of aspects. Those include enhancing customer care and call management; the management illegal dumping; recycling programmes and projects; developing and marketing solid waste products; volume reduction landfills and transfer stations; waste management partnerships; garden refuse sites in townships and informal areas; additional buy-back & drop-off centres; training on the new Revenue Management System (RMS); Bi-Annual Photometric Street Survey (in line with National Standards); Mechanical sweeping of all freeways and highways and Waste Management Education & Waste Minimisation Initiatives. In relation to Income and Revenue, it is sometimes difficult to trace the amount of money that has come into municipalities through waste collection. DSW breaks even, the municipality does not intend on making a profit. An issue up for debate with participants was that of incentives. The participants did not fully agree on the idea that ground workers/general workers should be offered incentives or bonuses. Some participants felt that they should be carrying out their duties optimally as they are employed to; whilst others said that it would encourage them to carry out their tasks with greater interest. Community Based Contracts Development and Management at DSW Community Based Waste Management Operations include developing/new areas, major contracts, community based contracts and cooperatives. Strategies supporting the community based waste management include training and development, basic business skills, documentation and waste management skills. What differentiates ethekwini s approach? There is ample focus on community involvement in the care and upliftment of their environment, there is focus on the improvement of quality of life, poverty alleviation (creates employment opportunity for local labour), contractors are given a boost towards a commercially viable business, valuable business skills and training in waste management. In terms of the formation of cooperatives, communities in ethekwini are assisted via the Community Participation and Support Unit. There have been positive outcomes with

3 community based contractors. Although there was buy-in from City leaders, cooperatives did not work well in ethekwini. It was suggested that community-based waste management be aligned with Local Economic Development (LED). LED would help the community to form cooperatives and identify training through them. Participants highlighted a challenge experienced by some municipalities; where cooperatives are found doing the bulk of the work whilst employees are playing a less active role. Getting the community involved in projects promotes ownership but the City should still lead the way in service delivery. The second half of Day 1 included a site visit to Birches Primary School and the Kloof Drop in Centre. Participants were exposed to the creative and practical uses for waste. Both case studies inspired the participants to apply similar principles in their own municipalities. DAY 2 Day 2 began with rounding up the lessons and light bulb moments of Day 1. In terms of Strategic Development, the participants highlighted the following lessons: finding innovative ways to raise funds and collect tariffs, branding enhancement (the goal should be to compete with the private sector), devising an effective communication strategy and events management business model, placing stronger emphasis on community participation, customer care should be the number one priority (suggested 72 hour turnaround time for complaints) and lastly that there should be a greater recognition of waste management as a basic service. On Waste Management Education, the following lessons were highlighted: communication with communities; local partnerships with media (local radio and newspapers) and stakeholders is imperative; the Education unit should assist in initiating awareness campaigns/programmes and recycling initiatives; training and empowerment of communities is essential; concept and operations of the Kloof Drop Off Centre are very realistic and inexpensive; internally capacity building is vital; collaboration with education institutions would assist in education on waste management; recycling initiatives to begin at grass root level. In relation to Community Contracts, the following points were highlighted: political buy-in is imperative; an excellent model for contracts management is required; identification rural areas are vital for effective waste management; skills development and empowerment of community contractors; procedure, monitoring and evaluation and a strategy to overcome political interference.

4 Solid Waste Management Operations The Core function of DSWs operations is refuse collection and street sweeping. There is a large workforce for the high number of customers spread across the city. There are six regions and each is headed by a manager. Districts are managed by an Area Cleansing Officer. The Institutional Framework, Target Markets, Products and Services The Business Branch was established in 1994, DSW obtained special dispensation from the council to operate as a Business Branch, once the brand had been established, the development of branding & marketing strategies followed. Budgeting and Financing for Solid Waste Management Given the magnitude of the Unit and extensive area serviced, the total operating budget for was R1.2B. The unit has a staff compliment of 1998, a vehicle compliment - 538, over 400 emerging contractors, over customers and households. Lessons from Day 2 The lessons derived from the question and answer session are as follows: In terms of the resource use in the Clean and Maintain my City programme, existing resources are used as it is the City s mandate to clean and maintain the city. Moving forward, it is envisaged that programmes/campaigns dedicated to cleaning the city will be run through Area Based Management. With regard to the enforcement of bylaws, there is a need to train officials to ensure that they are aware of what it is to be an enforcement officer; DSW has taken steps to ensure that enforcement officers also work closely with metro police. - DSW works with the Parks department to manage weed spraying on the streets. - ethekwini Municipality does not have an incentive scheme for its refuse collection team. All refuse collectors and street sweepers are graded as General Assistants (Task Grade 3). - Fleet is managed by DSW s 3 departments Plant and Engineering, Operations and Strategic and New Development. - How are deceased animals/pests/dealt with? Customers are required to call DSW. Dead animals are buried at the landfill site. - Is law enforcement controlled by DSW or another department? The law enforcement component of DSW work with Metro Police, Parks and Health. - A separate SCM Unit, with administration and finance officials deployed in every unit. - Rubble is the responsibility of roads. Parks is responsible for grass/garden waste

5 - How is revenue collected? 90% of the time, people are charged for waste collection on their lights account. - In ethekwini, businesses are assessed in terms of their needs. An assessment of the business is carried out over three months and the tariff could be adjusted based on the amount of waste. This would depend on the frequency and the number of bins. Businesses without a contract with DSW are fined if they are not contracted to another waste management company. - How competitive is DSW in relation to their pricing structure? The City sets its tariffs using The Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) Solid Waste Tariff Setting Guidelines for Local Authorities as a guide. Tariff setting is a common challenge for municipalities. DEA is available to assist municipalities with setting up tariffs. Mariannhill Landfill Site Visit Following Day 2 presentations, the participants were transported to the Mariannhill Landfill for a presentation and tour on the Landfill operations. Logan Moodley (DSW Project Executive) shared that the bulk of the Unit s spending on waste management is on transportation. If that can be minimised, it would be a huge saving. It was suggested that smaller municipalities look at managing waste on a regional scale. DSW is available to assist in tailoring the ethekwini model to suit other smaller municipalities. For more information, contact Logan Moodley at Logan.Moodley2@durban.gov.za DAY 3 Friday, 23 May 2014 Day 3 began with the reflections, summary and lessons learned from Day 2. Major lessons emerged on tariff structures (consolidated billing), the classification of refuse bags, categorisation of service areas, meeting customer demands, cost cutting measures emerging contractors VS in-house and reducing costs by having a combined driver and supervisor, general branding assisting in the reputability of the department, municipalities must conduct research before investing in advanced information systems, branding and marketing must be private sector competitor, good record management system to always have information on hand. SALGA s Cleaner Cities and Towns Campaign A key point that arose during the discussion was that social media is often perceived to be free. For smaller municipalities with limited access to the internet, social media is not free. SALGA will be profiling municipalities on social media. It was suggested that for municipalities without access social media, advertisements and awareness posters could be used.

6 Municipal space and bins could be used for the messages, this could be done internally. Innovation is possible with few funds. SALGA is inviting municipalities to communicate their challenges. There would be a differentiated approach to assist each municipality. Lessons Learnt from the Springfield Park Transfer Station The Springfield Transfer station provided a range of learning opportunities to the participants. The bulk of the City s refuse is dropped off by large trucks; the station does not cater for small individual drop offs. The station is advanced and the first of its kind in South Africa, similar models could however, be designed for smaller municipalities. Lessons Learnt from the 2014 Master Class In waste management, each municipality s biggest challenge varies. In ethekwini Municipality, it is illegal dumping. It costs the City millions per annum. DSW has taken steps to strengthen the prosecution system on illegal dumpers. Initially, illegal dumpers would be liable to a fine. Presently DSW is pursuing a system that would require those prosecuted to pay a fine and conduct community service. The challenge with this is indemnity for illegal dumpers. ethekwini Municipality cannot carry indemnity. In any formal construction project, a deposit is paid to the municipality to cover the cost of any illegal dumping or a site that is left in disrepair. Municipalities need to define departmental responsibilities for rubble, grass and other solid waste. In Education and Awareness, waste minimisation projects are not necessarily specific projects. DSW initiatives are usually in partnership with other departments or large external organisations. DSW has set tariffs for various waste categories. Garden waste is deemed an additional service and does not fall under household/domestic waste. There is a tariff structure in place specifically for garden waste. There are special rates for any type of special waste. Waste can generate revenue (not necessarily profit but it can offset costs). Municipalities could look at offsetting costs using waste to produce energy and stimulate the arts and crafts industry. Potential support from ethekwini DSW s largest sector is strategic training and the Unit is open to training other municipalities. Participating municipalities must specify the type of assistance they d require need, how much time is available and whether the proposed plan is going to be taken forward.