A global literature review of the drivers of indiscriminate dumping of waste: Guiding future research in South Africa

ABSTRACT

Indiscriminate dumping of waste is a global problem. It affects diverse regions across both developing and developed countries. With a view to understanding indiscriminate dumping in the South African context, the authors decided to undertake a synthesis literature review, as they wanted to determine the global scope of the research conducted on the drivers of indiscriminate dumping. The review showed that the drivers of indiscriminate dumping fell into three major categories, which interact with one another and even overlap. These drivers were insufficient waste management services (which is most prevalent in developing countries); residents’ knowledge and awareness of waste; and social dis/organisation in societies in both developed and developing countries. Two aspects are highlighted: The social dis/organstion aspect is under researched and it is clear that we need to understand each community's unique drivers before planning for interventions.

KEYWORDS:

• Illegal dumping
• indiscriminate dumping
• fly-tipping
• waste management
• South Africa
• social disorganisation

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge the funding support for the preparation of this paper from the National Research Foundation (NRF), and the South African Department of Science and Innovation (DSI), through the Waste RDI Roadmap, managed by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 GBP 100 million is the equivalent of 122,655.90 million USD as on 28 May 2020.

2 GBP 150 million is the equivalent of 183,960.90 million USD as on 28 May 2020.

3 ZAR 350 million is the equivalent of 19.5 million USD as on 21 May 2020.

4 ZAR 58 million is the equivalent of 3.24 million USD as on 21 May 2020.

5 The association of BRICS countries is comprised of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

6 Illegal refers can be used if the country has a law against indiscriminate dumping.

Additional information

Funding

The work is supported by the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI), and National Research Foundation (NRF) managed by the Research, Development and Innovation Waste Road map of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research.