 |
The WasteWise Campaign, Legal Component |
General
 
The WasteWise legal and enforcement component is focused
on providing an effective level of law enforcement as
regards littering and illegal dumping. It aims to achieve
a high level of offender prosecutions aided by adequate
enabling legislation, culminating in appropriate penalties
for offenders to encourage a change in their behaviour.
This component is comprised of two distinct yet connected
Task Teams: the Legal Task Team and the Law Enforcement
Task Team.
Legal Aspects
The Legal Task Team, comprised of City and consultant
legal advisors, as well as officials representing a
cross-section of disciplines, has consolidated the various
by-laws relating to littering and illegal dumping into
a single by-law applicable across the entire City of
Cape Town. The new by-law, after the required public
comment phase, is due to be promulgated in the coming
months.
The penalty provisions of the new by-law have been
increased and severe monetary penalties have been provided
for, particularly as regards repeat offenders.
Law Enforcement Aspects
The Law Enforcement Task Team, representative of law
enforcement across all City Administration areas, provides
a top-up law enforcement resource of 72 trained law
enforcement officers, focused on enforcing the dumping
and littering by-law.
This additional resource increases the capacity of
existing law enforcement agencies and allows for a goal-directed
approach to littering and dumping enforcement. It also
allows for enforcement of these offences on a 24-hour
basis. The supplemental enforcement resource works in
collaboration with communities to ensure that offenders
are apprehended, and with legal and prosecution agencies
to ensure effective levels of prosecution according
to the new by-law.
Enforcement is conducted on a "zero tolerance"
basis, in that even the smallest crime causing environmental
degradation through inappropriate waste disposal will
be enforced and prosecuted.
1447 prosecutions exclusively related to illegal dumping
were initiated between mid-November 2001 and March 2002.
In terms of the provisions of the new by-law, persons
convicted of second and subsequent dumping offences
will face a minimum penalty of R 20 000 or twelve months'
imprisonment.
Over 2200 sites of repeat illegal dumping activity
have been identified thus far. These are classified
according to the volume of onsite material, the nature
of the material and the risk it presents to communities.
The dumpsites have been prioritised for clearance and
are currently being monitored by communities and enforcement
agencies. Specific enforcement programmes are being
implemented to identify and prosecute offenders.
Enforcement actions are linked to the educational and
publicity components of the WasteWise Campaign to ensure
that communities are aware of enforcement programmes,
and to encourage reporting of littering and illegal
dumping. Education precedes clean-up and enforcement
actions, to encourage voluntary legal compliance.
|
