KNYSNA NEWS - Greater Knysna has been experiencing a disturbing increase in illegal dumping during lockdown, the municipality said last week, stating it has launched a campaign to clean up these sites.

“Targeting the areas in question is one step in a continuous effort to clean up where others discard their rubbish unlawfully,” Acting Municipal Manager (AMM) Dr Louis Scheepers said in a statement on Wednesday 23 September.

DA councillor in Rheenendal, Hilton Stroebel, even took to social media to create awareness around the issue. "I also would like to humbly appeal to residents, please take caution and refrain from illegal dumping. The municipality has embarked on a campaign to clean all illegal dumping site in all wards," he said.

Scheepers said the campaign requires the cooperation of various internal and external departments. “It holds the potential for job creation. It will also focus on the eradication of alien invasive plant species where necessary.

According to the AMM, potential solutions have been identified to discourage future illegal dumping at some of the sites, which could include converting certain sites into play areas, parks or leisure areas for residents to enjoy; constructing waste storage facilities in others; or even creating community-run food gardens where possible and sustainable.

Scheepers said that, although the municipality runs cleaning operations as a matter of course, it "will intensify" the existing cooperation between its environmental management and solid waste sections, as well as its grass-cutting, storm-water and channel-cleaning teams in efforts to close the lid on illegal dumping.

Businesses and individuals need to dispose of their waste responsibly and in the manner made available to them, Scheepers said. "We need to destroy this culture of littering – be it dropping a sweet's wrapper on the pavement or dumping waste on the side of the road. We must all work together to keep Knysna clean."

Knysna Municipality workers clean an illegal dumpsite in Rheenendal. Photo supplied

The clean-up campaign will target the following areas:

• The Sedgefield Dune (behind Smutsville / Sizamile)

• A section of Ward 3's 7de Laan

• Three areas in Ward 4

• A site in Ward 5's Rheenendal

• Sections of Gladstone Street and Bigai in Ward 6

• An area near the R339 in the vicinity of Dam-se-Bos

• The channel next to the outdoor gym in Ward 8

• A section off Botha Street (the Noetzie Road) in Ward 11

• The play park in Calendar Street, also Ward 11

• Sites on either side of the AFM Church, also in Ward 11

Please report illegal dumping to Natalie Salmons by e-mailing nsalmons@knysna.gov.za or phoning 081 556 9374.

'We bring you the latest Knysna, Garden Route news'