In a move set to change the face of refuse collection Kouga Municipality has started distributing wheelie bins to households for free.
Executive Mayor Horatio Hendricks said the first 3 600 wheelie bins were being distributed to homes at Hankey and Patensie this week, with procurement for a further 2 000 in the current financial year underway.
“Our aim is to replace black bags with wheelie bins across the region over the next five years,” he said.
“The advantages are numerous. Not only will it help us cut down on plastic waste, but it will also boost efforts by the municipality and communities to keep Kouga clean.”
Community Services Portfolio Councillor Daniel Benson said wheelie bins had proven to be a far more hygienic and safer way of storing and collecting refuse.
“One of the big challenges our refuse crews face on a daily basis is the tearing open of black bags by rats, stray dogs and goats. The wheelie bins will help to minimise this and create a cleaner and healthier environment for our residents,” Benson said.
“The bins will also help to reduce injuries to our refuse collectors. The black bags often break when loaded into the compactor trucks and staff can then be injured by sharp items or broken glass.”
The Mayor said the bins were being delivered directly to households at Hankey and Patensie this week.
“Each bin has a unique serial number and the home-owner must sign for it on receipt. We do, however, encourage residents to paint their street number on the bin as well, so that it is easily identifiable.”
Hendricks said the bins would be emptied on the same day as refuse collection is currently done.
“We will be emptying the wheelie bins at Hankey and Patensie for the first time on May 8.
“Residents are asked to ensure that their bins are on the pavement by 07:30 on the day and then to return them to their properties as quickly as possible once they have been emptied.”
He cautioned that only refuse in the bin would be collected and that households should take care not to place heavy items in the bins, making it impossible to move or lift them.
“There are guidelines as to what residents may and may not dispose of in the wheelie bins. Flyers in English, Afrikaans and isiXhosa are being distributed along with the bins to guide residents on their use.”
Tags: wheelie bins hankey
kougademocrat 
Leave a Reply