Housing in Southern Africa July 2016

Infrastructure and Mixed Use

Ekurhuleni scoops top award for waste management

At the Waste Khoro 2016 conference held in Durban, the City of Ekurhuleni scooped the top award for the best managed municipal landfill sites in Gauteng.

T echnical and Product Manager Renier Snyman explains that this represents the latest ad- dition to the 630 mm diameter range from DPI Plastics. The company introduced mPVC piping systems in the 1990s and DPI Plastrics remains an innovator and international leader in this market segment, having supplied technology licences as far afield as Australia, Asia and South America. DPI Plastics manufactures mPVC pipe in pressure classes from six to 25 bar, and in standard 6 m lengths, complete with spigot, integral socket and rubber ring seal for ease of instal- lation. All the products are manufac- tured in accordance with SANS 966 quality standard. “The increased demand for mPVC piping systems is due to its applica- bility for large-bore water infrastruc- T he top accolade recognises the city’s outstanding work at its five operational landfill sites at Rooikraal, Weltevreden, Rietfon- tein, Simmer and Jack and Platkop. Ekurhuleni currently collects over one million tons of waste per annum from over one million households each week. Thewaste consists of domestic, industrial andgardenwaste; asbestos waste is only accepted at the city’s Platkop landfill site. The cornerstone of the city’s main objective of effective waste manage- ment includes economic opportuni- ties, the social impact and the envi- ronmental benefits. Receiving the award, Ekurhuleni’s Member of the Mayoral Committee

(MMC) for Environmental Develop- ment Portfolio, Ndosi Shongwe said: “Ekurhuleni’s main focus is on developing new markets for waste and diverting waste disposal from landfill sites. In addition to reducing the Ekurhuleni’s carbon footprint, the city aims to create a renewable energy supply, and to increase job creation and skills development in all projects implemented by the city.” The extraction and utilisation of landfill gas reduces harmful green- house gas (GHG) emissions and prevents explosion hazards at the landfill sites from the accumulation of methane gas. Ekurhuleni currently utilises the landfill gas to generate 1 MWof electricity at the Simmer and

Jack landfill site, which is distributed directly to the municipal grid, sav- ing the municipality approximately R400 000 a month. Shongwe said the process of electricity generation is expected to expand to three more landfill sites. Since its inception, the project has reduced emissions by 748 781 tCO 2 e (tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent) to May 2016. ■

PVC piping for infrastructure projects DPI Plastics has already racked up two major orders for its new 630 mm Class 16 Modified Polyvinyl Chloride (mPVC) pipe for infrastructure projects.

minimises its total carbon footprint. Managing Director Juan Muller notes that the manufacture of the new 630 Class 16 mPVC pipe has allowed DPI Plastics to make sig- nificant inroads into the bulk water infrastructure segment. “In terms of what is happening in the market right now, there have been a lot of large-bore orders coming through. Government is certainly investing in major water projects. The building industry is stagnant at the moment, but when one looks at infrastructure and the provision of bulk water, it has been active for the past eight months at least, which has been very good for us,” Muller concludes. ■

ture projects. It has been designed specifically to provide similar tensile strength and greater resilience than standard PVC piping products. And, ideally suited to bulk water supply projects because mPVC is consider- ably more ductile than industry- standard unplasticised polyvinyl chloride (uPVC). The ductility of mPVC pipe gives it exceptional resistance to crack propagation under pressure. In ad- dition to superior toughness, mPVC has reduced wall thickness. This translates into less raw materials during the manufacturing process, and ultimately a lighter product that is easy to transport, install, and

July 2016