An investigation on attitudes and behaviours of residents towards recycling of municipal solid waste in Olievenhoutbosch, Centurion, in the Gauteng Province

M.Sc. (Environmental Management)Abstract: Municipal solid waste management has emerged as a great challenge facing environmental protection agencies in both developed and developing countries. Municipal solid waste disposal in many countries is predominantly by landfill because it is cost-effective and can accommodate large fluctuations in the amount and type of waste. However, waste disposal sites easily become sources of contamination. Despite the existence of legal tools published with clear objectives and targets pertaining to waste minimisation and recycling, the majority of South African waste ends up in landfills as mixed waste. Besides, sorting of waste at source is poorly practised in many South African municipalities. Hence, this study investigated the attitudes and behaviours of residents towards recycling of municipal solid waste in Olievenhoutbosch, Centurion, in the Gauteng Province. Three main elements were assessed, namely perceptions among residents of recycling, their willingness to participate in recycling initiatives, and the identification of challenges to municipal solid waste recycling. To this end, questionnaire surveys have been undertaken in the study area, making use of the purposive sampling technique. Furthermore, in-depth interviews were conducted with government officials responsible for municipal solid waste management. Despite the awareness of the importance of municipal solid waste recycling by residents as well as the adequate provision of waste removal services, findings from this study pointed to numerous deficiencies in the supporting role of the municipality. These include lack of formal programmes and coordination of waste separation at source, non-existence of a government-owned waste buy-back centre in the study area, no incentives for segregating waste at source, limited supply of waste separation tools, and the unavailability of land for temporary storage of recyclable waste by primary sorters. Furthermore, the extent of current recycling activities in the study area depend entirely on the efforts of informal waste pickers who sort recyclable waste from household waste for commercial purposes..