To ensure the safety of residents, the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality has increased security at the Arlington Waste Facility in Victoria Drive.
This facility has been in the spotlight over the past year after numerous robberies took place at this site in broad daylight.
In July last year, president of Eastern Province Cricket, Donovan May, was one of those who fell victim to robbers when he was attacked and robbed at the refuse site. There have also been numerous other reports of residents being attacked and even held at gunpoint whilst discarding their waste at the site.
MMC for Public Health in the metro, Lance Grootboom, recently conducted an oversight visit to the facility and said that he was happy with the fact that there were now more security guards deployed to the site to patrol during night and day shifts.
“Arlington has been in the media recently because of the increasing levels of crime that have taken place in and around the facility.
“Improving and reinforcing security here at Arlington is a major priority for me going forward but I can already confirm that additional security personnel have been deployed to the site,” Grootboom said.
He explained that apart from the existing four security officials, three have been added, of which two are stationed at the section for domestic waste disposal site, three at the back of the facility at the landfill and two at the entrance.
“We now have a total of seven security officials and some of them are even working the night shift. After conducting this visit, I am largely happy with what I have seen. The situation is still not where I would like to see it, but we have made small gains,” he added.
According to Grootboom, they have plans to enclose the facility by erecting a wall or fence in the long run. “Fencing the facility is a major project and it is something that we want to do because currently there are open areas around the landfill where criminal elements can easily gain access, so we have to enclose the sight.
“That way, there will only be one point of entry and exit, with security patrolling this point and performing daily inspections along the perimeter to look for any damage. However, that can only happen when there is a budget for it and, for this financial year, there is no budget for a fence. We are also looking at installing cameras at strategic places across the site and adding more lighting, but also that needs to be budgeted for first,” he said.
“That is why we have been focusing on upgrading security, in the meantime. As portfolio head of public health, I will engage with our safety and security directorate to discuss additional measures to improve safety around the facility, such as installing alarms, panic buttons and the addition of flood lights around the facility.”
Grootboom mentioned that he would be having meetings again this week to discuss the possibility of deploying even more security officials to the site, as he would like a total of 12 officials at the facility.
“I would like to thank our hardworking and dedicated team at Arlington that ensures that service delivery continues and the safety of our residents is a priority.”
Meanwhile, Grootboom’s directorate has also been focusing on the War on Waste programme and managed to clean up multiple areas in the metro, which had been contaminated by illegal dumping. Sites in Motherwell, Helenvale, Algoa Park, Booysens Park, Central and Barcelona in the Northern areas of the metro, among others, have been cleaned.
“We are working aggressively to curb illegal dumping. We work based on complaints from residents and also on areas identified for cleaning during my inspection visits,” Grootboom said. “There has never been such a fight against waste and the whole metro will be cleaned, not just certain areas,” he emphasised.
