Waste disposal and recycling in South Africa: drop-off sites, bags and rules

There is no national colour system in South Africa. Each municipality decides which bins and bags it issues. Three large metros as examples:

| City | General waste | Recyclables | Garden waste | |---|---|---|---| | Johannesburg (Pikitup) | 240-litre bin | clear or blue bag (Separation at Source areas), collected weekly | take to a Pikitup garden site | | Durban (eThekwini DSW) | black refuse bag | orange/clear bag (kerbside recycling project) | blue bag (by contract) or DSW garden refuse site | | Cape Town | ask the City | take to a City drop-off facility (27 listed) | clean garden waste to a drop-off facility |

Johannesburg: According to Pikitup, separation at source became mandatory from 1 July 2018 in the areas where it had run voluntarily since 2009. Households set aside dry recyclables (paper, plastic, metal, glass) and garden waste; recyclables should be rinsed before going in the bag. Pikitup states that there are currently no penalties for not taking part. Food waste still goes in the 240-litre bin.

Durban: eThekwini supplies black bags for domestic waste every three months. Households in the kerbside recycling project get orange/clear bags for newspapers, magazines, cereal boxes, cardboard, plastics, plastic bottles and Tetra Pak; they are collected on the same day as domestic refuse.

Elsewhere, ask your local municipality which system applies to your street.

Cape Town lists 27 drop-off facilities and states that they "offer residents free access to drop off recyclables, as well as bulky garage and garden waste". What each site accepts differs. At Hout Bay, for example, the City allows residents' cars, trailers or light delivery vehicles with a carrying capacity of up to 1.5 tons, a maximum of three loads of garage waste, builder's rubble and clean garden waste per day, and unlimited loads of recycling. Accepted there: clean builder's rubble, garage waste, paper and cardboard, cans and metal, plastic, e-waste, motor oil, clean garden waste, Tetra Pak, glass bottles and polystyrene. Not accepted: organic kitchen waste and hazardous waste.

Johannesburg: Pikitup describes its drop-off facilities / garden sites as places for dry recyclables, garden waste, bulky waste and builder's rubble, with a maximum of one bakkie load per resident per day, and notes that not all sites accept all materials. Keep garden waste free of plastic, bricks, metal and glass so it can be composted.

Durban: eThekwini lists its DSW garden refuse transfer sites (GRTS). Residents may dispose of one bakkie load of garden refuse (not exceeding 750 kg) free of charge, not more than once a week. Several garden sites also have recycling drop-off.

Buy-back centres: eThekwini describes buy-back centres as depots where waste collectors, reclaimers and street waste pickers — and residents — can sell recyclables.

Proof-of-residence rules and fees for larger or commercial loads are not the same everywhere: check with your municipality before you go.

• Bulky waste (furniture, mattresses, appliances): Pikitup says it has offered a bulky waste collection service since 2015 at no additional charge; contact your nearest depot, or use a garden site. In Cape Town, bulky garage waste goes to a drop-off facility.
• E-waste and batteries: Pikitup classifies e-waste (batteries, computers, cables, appliances, cellphones, bulbs, fluorescent tubes) as hazardous and says it should go to drop-off points provided by retailers; some retailers take old items back when you buy a replacement, e.g. car batteries. Several Cape Town drop-off sites accept e-waste.
• Household hazardous waste: Cape Town's Bellville facility has a hazardous waste section (limited to 50 kg per person per day) for items such as old paint and brushes, chemical cleaning products, pesticides, pool chemicals, used batteries, used oils, CFLs and lamps, e-waste and limited asbestos items (plant containers, gutters, old cement heaters). Not accepted there: gas cylinders, medical waste and expired pharmaceuticals, and sanitary waste.
• Used motor oil: Many Cape Town drop-off sites accept motor oil. The ROSE Foundation, set up by lubricant companies, works with approved collectors of used lubricating oil and publishes drop-off points on its website.
• Medicines: Expired pharmaceuticals are not accepted at Bellville's hazardous facility. Ask your pharmacy or municipality how to return them.
• Builder's rubble: Accepted at many drop-off sites within the daily limits above; larger amounts go to a landfill site. Pikitup says building rubble and soil can be disposed of at certain Pikitup landfills at no cost.
• Solar panels and home batteries: We found no municipal rule specific to these. Ask your installer or municipality first; do not put them in general refuse.
• Clothing and textiles: Not listed among accepted materials at the Cape Town drop-off sites we checked. Ask your municipality for local options.

South Africa uses Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR): under regulations published on 5 November 2020, producers of paper and packaging, electrical and electronic equipment and lighting must register with the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE); the regulations provide the framework for producers to develop and implement EPR schemes that manage these products at the end of their life. Registration opened on 5 May 2021.

Draft amendments published for comment in 2021 proposed mandatory take-back of certain products (including batteries and electronic goods), and draft amendments in 2023 proposed recognising returnable packaging and deposit refund systems as part of EPR schemes. Both were drafts; check the DFFE for the current status before relying on them.

In practice, retailer take-back for items such as car batteries exists, according to Pikitup, but there is no single nationwide deposit on drinks containers described in these official sources.

The main law is the National Environmental Management: Waste Act 59 of 2008 (NEMWA), in force since 1 July 2009 (with some sections later) and amended by the National Environmental Management Laws Amendment Act 2 of 2022. It sets national norms, waste licensing and the basis for EPR (section 18). Day-to-day rules — collection, drop-off limits, fees — are set in municipal waste by-laws, such as the City of Johannesburg's Waste Management By-laws (2013).