E-WASTE ASSESSMENT IN SOUTH AFRICA - e-Waste. This guide

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The White Paper on Integrated Pollution and Waste Management: The White Paper on IntegratedPollution and Waste Management (IP&WM) sets out the principles for the allocation of environmentaland waste management functions and powers for national, provincial and local governments. TheIP&WM policy process was further developed into the National Waste Management Strategy (NWMS)and Action Plans through a joint venture between the DEAT and the Department of Water Affairs andForestry (DWAF) in an initiative supported by the Danish donor agency. The Action Plans that weredeveloped under the NWMS initiative were focused on the following:-• Integrated waste management planning• Waste information system• General waste collection• Waste treatment and disposal• Capacity building, education, awareness and communication• Implementing instrumentsAs a result of the 1999 Annual Consultations between Denmark and South Africa, the Danish donorassistance programme has undertaken to assist South Africa in addressing some of the key issuesrelating to holistic waste and pollution management. Recycling, together with Waste InformationSystems and Health Care Waste (HCW) have been selected as priority areas that need to beaddressed in the short term. One of the key objectives for recycling is to extend and increase theconcept of recycling to other waste streams (apart from the ones already in place) where recyclingopportunities exist. The South African e-waste recycling initiative therefore presents such anopportunity.The Health Act: Act No. 63 of 1977 promotes healthy living and working conditions. Its relevance inwaste management is therefore related to the potential health risk implications of waste. Section 20places the obligation on local authorities to ensure that their areas of jurisdiction are maintained in aclean hygienic condition. Furthermore, Sections 34 and 38 authorise the Minister of Health to makeregulations which have relevance to waste management.The Hazardous Substances Act: Act No. 15 of 1973 provides the regulations to control themanagement of hazardous substances and the disposal of hazardous waste.6.1.2 The EconomySouth Africa is a middle-income, developing country with an abundant supply of resources, welldevelopedfinancial, legal, communications, energy, and transport sectors, a stock exchange that ranksamong the 10 largest in the world, and a modern infrastructure supporting an efficient distribution ofgoods to major urban centres throughout the region. However, growth has not been strong enough tosignificantly reverse the 30% unemployment rate. Other problems are crime, corruption and HIV/AIDS.The new government demonstrated its commitment to open markets, privatisation, and a favourableinvestment climate with the release of its macroeconomic strategy in June 1996 called "Growth,Employment and Redistribution (GEAR)" The GEAR policy framework includes the introduction of tax18/41
incentives to stimulate new investment in labour-intensive projects, expansion of basic infrastructureservices, the restructuring and partial privatisation of state assets, continued reduction of tariffs,subsidies to promote economic efficiency, improved services to the disadvantaged, and integration intothe global economy.South Africa is rich in mineral and energy resources, which has played a significant role in shaping thecountry's history, legal and administrative structures. These resources contribute to the country'sstrategic importance on regional and global markets. The country's agricultural and forestry sectorsproduce a wide variety of products in accordance with its climatic diversity. Industrial developmentsresulted in support of these activities (see 1.2.2 for the development of the chemical industry). SouthAfrica's wealth of natural resources, which includes gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore,manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, uranium, gem, diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium, salt andnatural gas contribute about 25% to the GDP, while the industrial sector contributes about 30% to theGDP with a labour force of about 25%. The supporting economic infrastructure consists of the majoreconomic centres, well organised metropolitan cities, modern highways that connect the main centres,international airport, harbours and ports. Although South Africa is classified as an upper middle incomecountry by the World Bank, quite a large proportion of South Africa's population display humandevelopment qualities mostly associated with low income countries and are living below the poverty line(DBSA, 2001). The poverty line is a measure commonly used to assess the level of poverty within acountry through the identification of the levels of income or expenditure below which a person isconsidered to be poor (DBSA, 2001).6.1.3 Society and CultureSouth Africa is a multicultural country with eleven official languages: Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, NorthSotho, South Sotho, iSiSwati, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, iSiXhosa and iSiZulu. Other widely spokenlanguages include Hindi, Gujarati, Tamil, Portuguese, Greek, German and Hebrew. English is generallyunderstood by most to a greater or lesser degree, and literacy levels vary. South Africans often refer tothemselves as a “Rainbow Nation” due to the fusion of African, European and Asian cultural influences.There are huge disparities in income distribution, education levels and quality of life, stemming in partfrom the shadowy legacy of the previous dispensation’s Apartheid policies, which segregated people onthe basis of racial categories, discriminating against millions on the basis of their skin colour.Democratic government was instituted in 1994, along with a new, progressive constitution, with forwardthinkingenvironmental legislation. Despite these positive advances, many South Africans still live inpoverty, with inadequate access to sanitation, water and healthcare, particularly critical given the scaleof the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Environmental awareness is low among people who are struggling to subsist.6.1.5 Science and Technology6.1.5.1 Parastatal InstitutionsThe South African Department of Science and Technology, has promulgated Policies and establishedresearch bodies and councils in order to align research with the nation's needs and as a support system19/41
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