The residents of Lenham Drive are fed up of illegal dumpers and are calling on the community to unite and take a stand against the unhygienic practice, which they say has become a health hazard and an ‘eye sore’ for the neighbourhood.
This comes after refuse was dumped against the wall of a resident’s property, for the past 10 years, resulting in the area becoming a breeding ground for rodents. Long-time resident of Lenham, Mrs C Govender, said she is frustrated by the amount of dirt and waste that is being illegally dumped against her property on a weekly basis. She said: “It has come to a point where its hard for me to step out of my house as the smell is so bad and the amount of flies are annoying.” Govender said apart from the waste emitting foul odour and attracting unwanted pests, the rubbish has begun to draw in unsavoury characters. “The ongoing dumping has made an easily accessible path for criminals to jump into my property. I’ve had criminals jump into my yard twice now and I’m tired of it. I have lost so many tools, materials and valuable items due to this and it can all be stopped if people don’t dump their waste there.” Govender said rodents and snakes have started to enter their properties after being attracted to the amount of dirt. “I have seen numerous snakes in my yard due to the dumping and it is becoming extremely dangerous. I have even spoken to a man who was dumping his rubbish by my property and was met with an attitude and vulgarity. This is not right, as a community we was supposed to keep our area clean and not dump in an open area.
There are dumping sites in Phoenix that are accessible to dump rubbish,” added Govender. Ward 52 Councillor, Samier Singh, said illegal dumping is a huge concern all over eThekwini and not just Phoenix alone. He said these concerns have been raised with Durban Solid Waste (DSW). “DSW does go out to do clean ups but the concern is after the place is cleaned, the next few days the illegal dumping occurs again. There are individuals that even dump where there is ‘No dumping sign boards’ erected. The situation we face is that we need evidence to forward to law enforcement officer and Metro to issue fines which would be up to R5000 to culprits that are illegally dumping.” Cllr Singh added that he has spoken to residents about adopting a spot or a verge and fence it up, so the dumping can stop. “Unmanaged litter can cause serious environmental and health issues to humans and marine lives. We need to all stand committed to stop any illegal dumping. The number to report illegal dumping is 031-322-1530 with evidence needed. We can have a clean well maintained environment if we work together to get rid or stop illegal dumping,” said Cllr Singh.
