Soshanguve traders plead for an end to illegal dumping

Small business traders in Tshwane’s Soshanguve Block H are living with an ongoing cycle of illegal dumping that they say is threatening their livelihoods.

The municipality’s repeated efforts to curb the problem have so far met with limited success.

The stench of rotting refuse and the sight of vandalised “No Dumping” signs is evident when visiting the area. Vacant land is used by some residents to discard their rubbish, despite efforts to clamp down on the practice.

Small business owner Andre Chauke fights a daily battle against illegal dumping. Despite his efforts to keep his storefront professional, the area surrounding his shop has become a magnet for illicit waste, which is also unhygienic.

“People continue to leave their trash there, even with a sign up,” Chauke said, noting that the sign itself was recently vandalised. “It’s not just about how it looks, it’s a health hazard. The pests and the foul odours are driving my customers away.”

Municipal teams have cleared 11 major illegal dumping sites within Block H since January, but many of these locations were filled with refuse again shortly after the teams departed.

—  Metro spokesperson Samkelo Mgobodzi

Chauke, who sells packets of maize meal, said he has had to pay out of his own pocket to improve the area around him. This despite municipal offices being “just down the road”.

“Before I started selling here, I went to the municipal offices to ask them to clean the area for me,” he recalled. “They never came. I eventually decided to hire people to clean the place myself.”

His frustrations are echoed by Kagiso Masubelele, who sells fruit and vegetables opposite the land used as a dumping site.

“As long-standing entrepreneurs in the community, I feel abandoned by the City of Tshwane,” Masubelele said.

“I am calling for more frequent trash collection and actual enforcement of anti-dumping laws.”

Masubelele, who has been operating his business since 2013, recalls that the illegal dumping was already a problem when he started. He said the municipality installed a sign prohibiting dumping, but it was soon destroyed by residents.

“I started my business when I was young. I have kids now, and we are still facing something that should have been stopped a long time ago.”

The lack of consistent waste clearing and the extent of the rubbish being dumped in recent years is hitting his bottom line.

“Because of this, some of my customers simply do not stop here anymore. They are driven away by the illegal dumping,” he said.

The pleas for a permanent solution came as Tshwane mayor Nasiphi Moya delivered her 2026 state of the capital address (Soca) at the Winnie Madikizela-Mandela Building at Unisa.

She said her 2026 renewal plan centres on the “everyday experience” of Tshwane’s residents.

“The administration aims to ensure that people can see and feel a tangible improvement in their surroundings. This shift is intended to transform the city into a functional space where the quality of life reflects the government’s commitment to progress,” said Moya.

“We are not yet where we want to be,” she stated, thanking residents for holding the government accountable.

“For business owners, accountability means more than just a reduction in external contractor spending, it means a street where a no-dumping sign actually carries the weight of the law.”

The City of Tshwane responded to the concerns regarding waste management in the area, asserting that the mounting refuse is a result of illegal dumping by residents rather than a failure in municipal service delivery.

According to city spokesperson Samkelo Mgobodzi, Soshanguve Block H remains on a consistent waste-collection schedule, with refuse trucks operating in the area every Monday.

Mgobodzi argued that the visual crisis often reported by the community does not stem from a backlog in these collections, but rather from the persistent unlawful disposal of waste in public spaces.

“Region 1 has been allocated approximately R136m, which accounts for 24% of the city’s total illegal dumping budget for the financial year,” Mgobodzi said.

The city has deployed 183 Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) workers to Region 1 that are tasked with litter picking and public cleansing to supplement standard operations.

Beyond immediate clearing, the city is assessing long-term preventative measures

—  Samkelo Mgobodzi

Mgobodzi highlighted a frustrating trend of dumping sites being re-established.

“Since January, the municipal teams have cleared 11 major illegal dumping sites in Block H,” said Mgobodzi, noting that many of these locations were filled with refuse again shortly after the teams departed.

According to reports from Municipal Health Services, there is no epidemiological data linking the dumping sites to specific health outbreaks in the area.

“The city acknowledges that the waste is a challenge and an eyesore. The city is now looking toward more aggressive interventions to break the cycle of dumping.”

Mgobodzi said a major targeted clean-up operation for Block H is scheduled for the last week of April.

“Beyond immediate clearing, the city is assessing long-term preventative measures, including fencing off problematic vacant lots to prevent vehicle access, increasing monitoring and patrols near the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) precinct, and assessing the strategic placement of large skip bins to encourage proper disposal.”

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