5 minute read
News round-up
from ReSource May 2021
by 3S Media
SUSTAINABILITY NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD
SOUTH AFRICA’S PAPER RECYCLING RATE ON THE UP
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During 2020, South Africans recycled 1.1 million tonnes of paper and paper packaging, putting the country’s latest paper recovery rate at 73% – up from 68.5% in 2019. This is according to paper recycling association RecyclePaperZA, which states that South Africa has kept 19 million tonnes of paper out of landfills over the past 15 years, enough to cover 3 456 soccer fields.
“This is a fantastic achievement, but there is always room for improvement. With more companies moving to paper packaging for their products, consumers need to play their part too,” says Anele Sololo, general manager, RecyclePaperZA.
Sololo believes that it is a good time for citizens, schools and businesses to be more proactive in terms of waste and recycling. “By recycling, we not only reduce the burden on our landfills and support livelihoods, we are also more mindful of the waste we create and where it should be going,” notes Sololo.
“In a world where packaging pollution clogs its waterways and rubbish lines the streets, recycling is something that citizens can do to bring about a cleaner South Africa.”
Stakeholders join forces to tackle rising e-waste
In order to tackle South Africa’s rising e-waste challenge, key local and international stakeholders have joined forces to launch an ambitious project set to bring about economic opportunities while ensuring workable and safe solutions for the management of e-waste.
Rooted in the global Sustainable Recycling Industries (SRI) programme, the local chapter of the SRI project aims to build capacity for sustainable e-waste recycling, by supporting related national initiatives and implementing pilot ventures.
The SRI project in South Africa involves various stakeholders including The Appliance Bank (TAB) – a training programme for unemployed men that gives them the technical skills needed to repair damaged and customer-returned small appliances.
TAB will provide a two-year training programme for unemployed men to establish their own sustainable businesses. The men repair the donated household appliances and sell them for a profit in their communities. The pilot project is kicking off in iLembe, KwaZulu-Natal.
The first phase of the SRI programme was implemented between 2013 and 2018 and it is now in its second phase (2019 to 2023). The overall development objective of the SRI programme (Phase 2) is to create favourable framework conditions, which enable the development of a sustainable recycling industry for e-waste and any related waste streams.
The City of Cape Town (CoCT) is appealing to the public to take part in its organic food waste project, aimed at diverting food waste from landfills. The pilot project will be trialled to assess its efficacy and potential for further roll-out.
The food waste diversion project will operate from four CoCT drop-off sites in Belhar, Killarney, Hout Bay and Woodstock, and will have four pop-up sites in the Cape Town CBD, Claremont CBD, Durbanville and Somerset West.
Participants will be issued a 5 ℓ bucket with an information leaflet, to fill with organic food waste, temporarily storing it in the fridge or freezer; when the buckets are filled, the waste can be taken to the designated site where the bucket was received.
The bucket will then be decanted, cleaned and reissued to the individual. The project will run until 30 June, with 200 participants per site. Alison Davison, head: Waste Minimisation, CoCT, says it is among the various strategies being trialled to divert food waste from landfills, including a garden waste programme and a home composting container programme.
WOOLWORTHS SCRAPPING PLASTIC BAGS IN 50 STORES
To minimise packaging waste ending up in landfills, Woolworths announced that 50 of its stores will switch to being plastic-free.
Woolworths said it will no longer sell single-use plastic bags, as part of its vision is to steer towards zero packaging waste to landfill. The retailer said that, while it encouraged customers to bring and use reusable bags, stores will also sell a recycled bag manufactured locally. The bag retails at R6.49.
These stores, based mainly in Gauteng and the Western Cape, take Woolworths to over 200 stores in Southern Africa free of single-use plastic bags. This is a significant achievement at a time when we have had so many supply uncertainties.
In the face of the worsening effects of climate change, increasing energy prices in South Africa, and a more challenging business environment, companies have been left with no choice but to improve their operations and strive to become more energy efficient.
Barry Bredenkamp of the South African National Energy Development Institute (Sanedi) explains that this trend is demonstrated by the increased number of Section 12L Energy Efficiency tax incentive applications Sanedi has received since March 2020.
The 12L tax incentive, according to the Income Tax Act (No. 58 of 1962), provides an allowance for businesses to implement energy efficiency savings. The savings allow for a tax deduction of R0.95/kWh saved on energy consumption. From March to May 2020, the number of applications more than doubled.
Bredenkamp says that part of the reason for the update since March is that people finally had time to consider their energy bill and carbon tax payable during lockdown alert level 5.
“Large power users, and South Africans in general, are well informed about our energy landscape and have finally woken up to the reality of the carbon tax. They know that there are things they can do to reduce power use and costs.”
Greening conferences by reducing waste to landfill
According to the Event Greening Forum, the typical conference attendee produces 1.89 kg of waste each day, of which 1.16 kg will end up in a landfill. Carmen Wagener, operations director of Reed Exhibitions Africa, says the company’s waste reduction policy is continually being reviewed and fine-tuned to implement solutions wherever possible.
Reed Exhibitions Africa’s greening policy and procedures already include seeking out and recommending venues that have a sound greening policy, as well as monitoring the carbon footprint of events and implementing steps to counteract them.
Reed is also constantly stepping up its energy saving and fine-tuning waste management, with a view to reused or recycle waste wherever possible. The planned update of all its green guidelines will take effect this year, as in-person gatherings are allowed to return to the events calendar.
These will set a benchmark against which the company can meet and improve its efforts as new solutions come to market. One of the major drives is to promote the use of printed fabric graphics to clients and going digital by promoting digital signage at exhibitions, electronic brochures and e-ticketing where possible.
