TIPWG Newsletter May/June: What is happening with waste?
In November, the New Waste Act was gazetted in Government Gazette 43879 (Notice No. 1184), setting out targets to drastically reduce the amount of waste that enters South Africa’s landfill sites. The new Waste Act is part of the National Environment Management legislation, which places “extended producer responsibility” on the manufacturers, distributors and importers of a long list of primarily consumer item products. Aside from placing greater pressure on manufacturers to take responsibility as to where their products end up, the new Act requires manufactures of cardboard/newspaper/magazines, electronic and electrical equipment, glass bottles, lighting products, metal/steel/tinplate/aluminium and plastic packaging, amongst other things, to include increasing amounts of recycled material in their products. Under the Act, producers must be registered with the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) by 5 November 2021 and submit regular audits about the schemes, paying an “extended producer responsibility fee”.
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