Changing waste management

Global management company Averda has invested R250 million in a new waste management site – the first to be built under stringent new environmental guidelines, with the latest international best practice in landfill engineering.

The site is located in the petrochemical industrial heartland of South Africa, in Vlakfontein in the Vaal Triangle. It has been constructed and opened by Averda’s local subsidiary Wasteman.

“There has been a marked increase in the region’s industrial development and the industrial and mining areas of the inland regions – which increases waste volumes. The Vlakfontein landfill site will alleviate the shortage of fully compliant disposal facilities for hazardous waste in South Africa,” says Jan Labuschagne, Wasteman’s managing director.

Labuschagne adds that hazardous waste needs a comprehensive approach.

“Wasteman and Averda SA practice total waste management. Waste streams that can be diverted from the landfill for recycling (or recovery) are subject to our strict processes; any non-recyclable or hazardous portions of these streams, after suitable screening, can be disposed of at the Vlakfontein site.”

Wasteman is in the process of implementing environmental programmes in the area, including the development of vegetation and introduction of wildlife. It also wants to invest into the local community through education and recycling programmes.