Garbage collection: Locked landfills leave Joburg waste with nowhere to go

As ongoing strike action by waste collection workers leaves refuse piling up on streets across Johannesburg, residents and local businesses face a growing public health crisis.

A note to councillors in many parts of the city confirmed on Wednesday that refuse collection services “had been temporarily disrupted due to safety and security concerns arising from reported protest activity.”

“As a precautionary measure, operational teams did not proceed with collections to ensure the safety of employees and prevent any potential risk to personnel.

“Please note that Tuesday and Wednesday’s refuse collection routes have been affected.”

Pikitup has not yet responded to* The Citizen*‘s request for comment on the protest, other than suggesting the dispute was citywide.

Is private collection the answer?

With municipal wheelie bins overflowing on sidewalks and no sign of regular collections resuming, many are turning to private waste removal services as a desperate last resort.

However, an investigation into the private collection market reveals a secondary, more alarming systemic failure: even when residents pay out of pocket for private removal, often the waste has nowhere to go.

The landfill gridlock

The crisis extends far beyond uncollected bins in residential suburban streets.

Major municipal disposal facilities, including the critical Robinson Deep and Goudkoppies landfill sites, have shut their gates, reportedly locked in an operational standstill tied to operator disputes.

For private operators reliant on public infrastructure, the site closures have brought business to a complete standstill.

“We aren’t taking any rubbish at all because we simply have nowhere to put it,” explained one private waste company. The company noted that the nearest operational public landfill is in Mamelodi, an unviable distance for standard Joburg collection routes.

Other operators are attempting to navigate the deadlock through temporary workarounds. One company confirmed it is still running collections but is forced to keep undumped waste stored on the back of its bakkies until municipal facilities reopen.

Meanwhile, larger operations such as Waste World and Waste Group are bypassing city infrastructure entirely by rerouting loads to private disposal sites, including Chloorkop and Mooiplaat on the Gauteng border.

How much does hiring a private garbage collector cost?

This infrastructure failure leaves Johannesburg ratepayers effectively paying twice: first through their monthly municipal rates bill for services not being delivered, and second to private contractors charging market premiums to clear basic refuse.

Rates among private providers vary widely based on disposal strategies:

Per-bin services: Operators charge between R70 and R100 per wheelie bin for individual collections.

Bakkie & light utility loads: Standard bakkie removals range from R750, rising to R950 for a bakkie and trailer combination from providers like House Junk.

Bulk & commercial services: Larger removal loads cost between R1 400 for a six-tonne truck up to R2 150 for a full load of approximately 30 black bags through JunkWay, while weekly skip hire from Dash Waste sits at R1 600.

For households facing tight monthly budgets, these additional costs represent a steep privatisation tax, simply to keep human health hazards away from their front doors.