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The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality has appealed to residents and businesses to dispose of waste, particularly hazardous waste in a safe matter, saying the failure to do so exposes people to serious health hazards.
The appeal on Thursday follows the “unfortunate death of a 13-year-old” boy, Altee Willard of Mothewell, who died last week after consuming a liquid he found while scrounging for food with his father in Bluewater Bay.
Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality says subsequent to the unfortunate incident, the waste management sub-directorate in the city’s health directorate embarked on an intensive stakeholder awareness and engagement programme on the guidelines for safely managing hazardous waste.
NMB said the stakeholder awareness and engagement programme will form part of a project called Separation at Source Programme that is currently underway to sort waste materials into different categories
“We will be working in partnership with waste pickers, households, businesses and the Nelson Mandela University (NMU) to improve in this area.
“It is unfortunate that the child’s death occurred at the time when the Directorate was about to launch the SSP in Bluewater Bay and surrounding areas,” said Thsonono Buyeye, mayoral committee member for public health.
He said the first phase, that was introduced in Ward 9, has proven to be a huge success with many residents participating.
Buyeye said the Municipality is also hoping to benefit from the university’s research to improve its waste management practices, especially concerning the safe handling and disposal of chemicals.
