Households in the Northern Suburbs can once again look forward to receiving free composting containers which encourage home composting initiatives, and lessens the waste on waste disposal facilities.
“The roll-out of home composting containers began in 2016, with approximately 5 000 home composters issued each year since then, excluding the period of the national lockdown in 2020 and 2021,” says Grant Twigg, City of Cape Town’s Mayco member for urban waste management.
After a two year halt on this project, residents in the northern suburbs can once again collect their composting containers at Blaauwberg Community Hall in Bloubergstrand, or at Edgemead Community Hall, Subcouncil 3 Council Chambers on Royal Ascot Drive in Milnerton, and the Leibrandt van Niekerk Hall in Table View.
“The free composters are currently only for single residential properties, and flats and complexes do not qualify, as they do not necessarily have secure garden spaces, and often have more complex property ownership arrangements,” Twigg explains.
Each household is limited to one composting container, and is issued on a first-come-first-served basis.
“Residents bring their identity document and municipal account to their closest venue, where they will complete the home composter application form — thereafter a demonstration of how to use the composting container will follow,” Twigg says.
Carbon emissions
Why did the City decide on this initiative? To minimise the waste on waste disposal facilities, and reduce damaging carbon emissions from these sites, Twigg responds.
“Landfills are surprisingly big contributors to carbon emissions and climate change. When organic waste breaks down in a landfill, it produces landfill gas. This gas, made up primarily of methane has a global warming potential 25 times higher than carbon dioxide,” Twigg continues.
Besides keeping waste disposal facilities smaller, and safer with less dangerous gases released, home composting with the help of the composting containers also encourages healthy soil which can motivate residents to plant vegetables and save money, Twigg says.
“The home composting containers’ function is to facilitate composting in a resident’s own garden, empowering the public to directly benefit from the value of the organic waste they produce.The organic waste is not collected, but used by the residents,” Twigg explains.
Further advice and recommendations on the CoCT’s composting containers can be found here
