Where do I report illegal dumping and what happens after I have reported?
Illegal dumping can be reported at the following offices:
Regional councillors constituency offices
• Windhoek west Constituency in Pullmann street
• Tobias Hainyeko Constituency in Omuvapu street
• Samora Machel Constituency in Tugela street
• Katutura East Constituency in Titus Namueja street
• Katutura Central Constituency in Pullmann street
• Khomasdal North Constituency in Bonn street
• Moses Garoeb Constituency in Omuvapu street
• Soweto Constituency in Abraham Mashego street
• Windhoek Rural Constituency in Nelson Mandela street
• Windhoek East Constituency in Pullmann street
Municipal offices
• Head office in Independence avenue at the Customer Care Centre
• Katutura Customer Care Centre in Independence avenue
• Khomasdal Municipal office in Borgward street
• Soweto Municipal Office in Emmaus street
To any Municipal official who is daily in your areas:
• To Ward contractors in your areas
• To the Solid Waste Management office in New Castle street, Northern Industrial Area
Your complaint will be followed up through an investigation and should the culprit be found, they are instructed to remove the waste within a specific time period, failing which, the City removes it and the service is billed to their account. Should the culprit not be traced, the City will clean the area and the costs will be borne by the residents.
What type of waste must I place in the orange skip container?
The orange skip container is only for the disposal of garden refuse and building rubble and not household waste. These containers are placed in the northwestern suburbs where it is believed that the majority of residents do not have the means to easily access the garden refuse and building rubble sites.
What must I do when my clear bag is not collected?
Should the clear bag not be removed, kindly retain it for removal at the same day the following week and report to Rent–A–Drum at telephone no: 244097
Why does the City of Windhoek empty my container and leave the Clear Bag behind?
The implementation of the clear bag system and removal of the clear bag is done by Rent–A–Drum on the same day as the removal of waste by the City of Windhoek. Please keep in mind that the truck that empties the green wheelie bin and the truck that collects the recyclables may not do so at the same time.
What can I recycle?
The items that must be placed in the clear bag are plastic, cans, paper and glass. Residents are to ensure that the recyclables are clean and dry before placing them into the bag. Residents are requested to rinse the containers before placing them into the bag.
How do I participate in the Clear Bag recycling system?
The Clear Bag recycling system allows for all households within Windhoek to recycle at the source. This means that by removing recyclables from the main waste stream, these are prevented from ending up at the landfill site and so the life of the landfill site is extended. The clear bag system has been in operation since September 2010 and so far all the areas where waste is collected on a Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday can participate. All households in these areas are supplied with a clear bag, where residents are required to place the recyclables. The bag full of recyclables must be placed next to the wheelie bin on waste removal day and whilst the bin is emptied by the City of Windhoek, the clear bag will be collected by Rent-A-Drum. Upon collection of the full bag, the resident will be supplied with an empty clear bag. The empty bag shall be tied to the empty wheelie bin.
Why is my 240L Wheelie bin only emptied once a week and what can I do if I want to increase the frequency of removal?
The City removes the household waste once a week because the amount of waste generated at the household level demonstrated that a weekly removal is sufficient. If a property generates waste over the allocated wheelie bin, a second bin may be requested at an additional cost to the resident.
Can I use my 240L Wheelie bin for any use other than containing household waste?
No, you cannot use the 240 L Wheelie bin assigned to your property for any other use except that for which it was designed and allocated, which is for the containment of household waste.
You are not allowed to place heavy refuse e.g. building rubble and garden refuse and drag the container for disposal at the skip container or anywhere else as this will damage the container.
Who owns the 240 L Wheelie bin, is it my property or does it belong to the City of Windhoek?
The 240L Wheelie bin belongs to the City of Windhoek. You are merely using it for the period during which it is assigned to your property. Should you disconnect the waste removal services you are required to return the wheelie bin to the City of Windhoek.
How are the waste management tariffs calculated?
The waste management tariffs are calculated based on a cost recovery principle. The polluter pays principle is applied to ensure that the generator of the waste is responsible to pay for the costs of removing and disposing of such waste.
What is the waste management availability charge and why do I pay such a charge if my refuse is removed by a private contractor?
The City of Windhoek has the responsibility to manage waste generated within Windhoek and therefore the City provides infrastructure equipment and tools to be in a position to render the services with immediate effect when requested. The availability charge is levied to all property owners who are not connected to the City for waste removal services so that in the event that they require such services, it is made available. This level of preparedness is costly and hence the availability charge is levied to cover such costs.
What is the difference between the waste management charge and the refuse removal tariff on my bill?
The Waste management charge previously formed part of the rates and taxes but was separated in order to reflect the portion of the rates and taxes, which is assigned to the rendering of waste management services within the city. This charge covers the cost for the provision of non-remunerable waste management services i.e. waste services, which cannot be attributed to a specific user. It covers the sweeping of streets, the cleaning of public open spaces and riverbeds, the removal of illegally dumped waste, the development and provision of landfill sites, provision of waste management-related infrastructure and waste management education programmes. It is calculated on the same basis as the rates and taxes and it differs for each erf depending on the land and improvement value of the specific property.
The refuse removal tariff covers the collection, transportation and disposal of household waste from each individual property connected to the municipal refuse removal service.
