MPs Cleaning Up Their Act- The National Management: Waste Amendment Bill Approved.

The purpose of the National Environmental Management Waste Act, 2008 ("NEMWA") is to reform the law regulating waste management in order to protect health and the environment. To achieve this NEMWA provides for institutional arrangements and planning matters; it also establishes a national waste information system and provides for the licensing and control of waste management activities. Notwithstanding these various waste management mechanisms, waste disposal remains the principal way of dealing with waste in South Africa. An estimated 1,200 landfill sites currently in operation bear testament to this fact¹. The reason for this in many cases is largely attributable to the implementation challenges and inadequacies identified in the NEMWA making it difficult to establish an integrated approach to waste management.