Burning rubbish affecting students at TVET college in Springfield

Toxic fumes from an illegal dumping site in Springfield has eThekwini TVET college students fearing for their long-term health.

Springfield’s Bisasar Road, sandwiched between the campus and the eThekwini Electricity Network control faults operations depot, has become a haven for illegal dumping.

What was once a two-lane road that leads to entrances of both institutions has been turned into a single lane surrounded by piles of waste.

People openly dump waste into the grateful hands of those who have made a living out of sifting through it to find recyclable material to trade. The rest of the waste is then burnt up to make room for more which then emits the fumes that affects mainly the college.

“I don’t know which one is worse: the stink from all the waste or the smoke when they are burning it. It is unbearable and when the fumes reach our classrooms, everyone just starts coughing, making it impossible to learn,” said Andiswa Biyela, a student.

“When they light up the garbage in the afternoon you cannot walk on the road, you have to run from the gate up to the intersection of Electron Road. It’s hell,” said another student, Olwethu Dlamini.

SRC president Ndlelenhle Khanyile said students had it harder because the situation was adding to the normal academic challenges.

He said they were especially worried about what the exposure to the toxic fumes might mean for their health in the long term.

“We have been warned that we might not immediately see the full effects of being exposed to these fumes but we might find ourselves developing disease like tuberculosis and it will likely be from this dumping,” he said.

Aside from the toxic fumes, the debris is also washed onto the road when it is raining. That makes the campus inaccessible by car from Bisasar Road, forcing taxis to leave students far from the gate.

Recyclers have been blamed for encouraging the illegal dumping and the burning waste.

Vezi Machi, one of the recyclers, acknowledged that this was a health hazard for nearby residents and students but also maintained that there were families that this illegal site fed.

ActionSA provincial leader Zwakele Mncwango, who led a team of party leaders on an oversight visit to the college, said removing debris on the road was a temporary solution that showed that the municipality was well aware of the issue.

“It speaks volumes that the municipality is part of the problem by actively moving debris onto pavements instead of disposing of it in the correct manner,” he said.

Mncwango said the party would write to the economic development, tourism and environmental affairs MEC Sboniso Duma to ensure that environmental regulations were followed and to come up with solutions to clear the rubbish.

“We will also put a motion before the eThekwini municipality in our next council meeting to put an immediate stop to the illegal dumping by placing security in the area to enforce bylaws.”

Lindiwe Khuzwayo, eThekwini head of communication, told TimesLIVE that the Durban cleansing and solid waste unit had been made aware of the issue and it was formulating a plan to combat it.

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Khuzwayo said the unit had implemented a number of waste management education programmes aimed at educating the public on the dangers caused by illegal dumping. She said this had been coupled with cleanup campaigns that were meant to eradicate illegal dumpsites.

“Despite all these initiatives, the city still faces the challenge of illegal dump sites that are continuously mushrooming in certain areas.”

She said their efforts to curb illegal dumping can only be successful if the community plays its part and meets them half way.

“This will not be sustainable if residents continue to dump waste irresponsibly.”

She urged people to report illegal dumping to the cleaning and solid waste department on 031 311 8804.

TimesLIVE