Parkside church battles illegal dumping
THE Uniting Reform Church, which has been a mainstay in Parkside for the last 94 years, is fighting a battle against illegal dumping outside their premises.
Yesterday a tiny group of the church’s 600-strong congregation pitched in to remove as much of the dumped waste as possible before Easter – their “busiest time of year”.
Reverend Clinton Petersen said he believed the waste was from residents living all over Parkside and was being dumped at night in the space which the church uses as parking.
He said he had tried to contact Buffalo City Metro (BCM) but to no avail, and had also set up a meeting with his local councillor twice but was left waiting both times.
He said he had even sent pictures to Helen Neale-May, BCM’s portfolio head of community services, but this had also not received any response.
“It is not just building rubble and garden refuse but also household waste like used disposable nappies.
“We want BCM to clean it up. This is their land – they’re supposed to clean it, not us,” he said.
Neale-May said she was aware of the problem and she had referred the complaint to their waste management department.
She said the main issue with dumping cases was that no sooner had BCM cleaned up than the community returned to dump again. As a result, she said, the municipality would be launching “campaigns to educate communities on how to properly dispose of waste,” and would introduce skips where communities could place their waste until collection.
Neale-May promised to follow up on the church’s complaint with the relevant municipal department.