The Greater Tygerberg Partnership (GTP) has launched a cash for trash recycling challenge.
This is aimed at encouraging people to think about how they discard their waste, the importance of recycling, and how to reduce the waste they create in the first place. And they’ll have a chance to win cash for their efforts. The challenge runs from 6 May to 30 June 2019. During that time, the resident or business who recycles the most trash wins R500 every two weeks.
The Track My Trash challenge is part of the GTP’s Bellville Zero campaign, in a bid to transition Bellville to a zero-waste environment. Warren Hewitt, CEO of the GTP, explains the rationale behind the challenge: “With landfill sites almost at capacity, waste is becoming a significant issue in our cities. So we want to encourage people think about how they discard their waste, the importance of recycling, and how to reduce the waste they create in the first place. This is an important part of our efforts to facilitate an urban transition, for Bellville to become a leading African city, where people can live, work and play in a well-kept urban centre.”
In November 2018, the Department of Environmental Affairs reported that only 11% of the country’s waste was recycled. In Cape Town, 19.39% of the city’s 2.5 million tonnes of waste is diverted from landfill. Aside from the aesthetics of litter-strewn streets, as landfill sites reach capacity, discarded waste could present health threats to urban populations.