Deputy Minister Bernice Swarts: Atteridgeville Clean Air Community Dialogue
Speaking notes for the Deputy Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment International Day of Clean Air for blue skies 2026, Atteridgeville Clean Air Community Dialogue, Mbolekwa Sports Complex, City of Tshwane, 7 September 2026
Programme Director,
Gauteng MEC for Environment, Mr Ewan Botha,
The Mayor of the City of Tshwane, Dr Nasiphi Moya
Representatives of the Gauteng Provincial Government,
Leadership of the City of Tshwane,
Councillors and community leaders,
Representatives of civil society and community-based organisations,
Our partners from academia, civil society, business and the environmental sector,
Young people,
Members of the Atteridgeville and Saulsville communities,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Good morning.
It is a privilege to join you today as South Africa joins the international community in commemorating the 2026 International Day of Clean Air for blue skies.
The United Nations General Assembly designated 7 September as the International Day for Clean Air and Blue Skies to strengthen public awareness and facilitate actions to improve air quality globally. The Day seeks to raise public awareness and facilitate actions to improve air quality, protect public health and contribute towards climate resilience and sustainable development.
The theme for the 2026 International Day of Clean Air for blue skies highlights the economic and health benefits of addressing air pollution and climate change together, recognising that many sources of air pollution; including fossil-fuel combustion, biomass burning and other emission sources; also contribute to climate change. The central message for 2026 is that clean air should be viewed not only as an environmental and health priority, but also as an investment in sustainable economic development.
This day gives us an opportunity not only to talk about air pollution, but also to listen to communities, understand the environmental challenges experienced in people's daily lives, and agree on practical actions that can improve the quality of the air we breathe. The message of the 2026 International Day is particularly relevant to us because it highlights the need to connect clean-air action with climate action.
We can no longer treat air pollution, waste management and climate change as separate environmental challenges. They are deeply connected.
CLEAN AIR IS ABOUT PEOPLE
When we speak about air quality, we are speaking about our health, our children, our homes and the quality of life in our communities.
Air pollution does not only come from large factories or vehicles. It can also come from activities taking place much closer to where people live. One of these is the burning of waste.
In communities where waste is illegally dumped or where waste collection services are inadequate, people may sometimes resort to burning waste as a way of getting rid of it. When we burn household waste, plastics, tyres and other materials, the waste does not simply disappear. It is transformed into smoke, gases and harmful particles that enter the air we breathe.
The pollution may be carried beyond the place where the waste is burned, affecting children, elderly people, workers, people walking to school or work, and families inside their homes.
This is why waste management is also an air quality issue and a public-health issue.
THE CONNECTION BETWEEN WASTE, AIR QUALITY AND CLIMATE CHANGE
South Africa generates more than 360,000 tonnes of electronic waste (E-waste) annually, yet only a small proportion is formally recycled. The prohibition of e‑waste disposal to landfill, together with the introduction of Extended Producer Responsibility regulations, reflects government’s clear intent to divert this waste stream towards recovery, recycling, and reuse.
Since January 2025, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) launched-a nationwide E-Waste Collection Campaign - an environmental awareness and action initiative aimed at promoting the safe and responsible disposal of obsolete and unwanted electrical and electronic equipment. These campaigns are done in partnership with the Producer Responsibility Organisations (PROs) responsible for the Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) sector, whereby residents were encouraged to bring along or drop off their e-waste at the collection point set-up by the PROs to receive incentives in a form of instant cash payment or vouchers which can be redeemed at linked local supermarkets. The incentives will be issued by the PROs responsible for EEE sector based on the weight of e-waste brought in, with a price per kilogram of R4.50/kg.
The campaign encourages communities to dispose of items such as old cell phones, computers, televisions, batteries, chargers and small appliances through designated collection and recycling channels rather than dumping or burning them.
By diverting e-waste from illegal dumping sites, landfills and open burning, the campaign helps reduce the release of hazardous substances and harmful air pollutants, while supporting the recovery and recycling of valuable materials.
This year's International Day reminds us that clean-air action is climate action.
Air pollution and climate change often share common sources. When we reduce emissions from waste burning, dirty fuels, transport, industrial activities and other sources, we can achieve immediate benefits for the health of communities while also contributing to longer-term climate objectives.
This is particularly important because communities are already experiencing the effects of climate change through extreme heat, droughts, floods, fires and other changing weather conditions. Climate change can, in turn, make some air-quality challenges worse. Our response must therefore become more integrated, and importantly, our interventions must be felt at community level.
FROM ILLEGAL DUMPING TO A CIRCULAR ECONOMY
Programme Director,
We must change the way we think about waste.
Waste should not automatically be regarded as something that must be dumped or burned.
Many materials that we throw away still have economic value. The e-Waste Collection campaign also highlights the important connection between waste management, air quality, climate change and human health.
Through partnerships with municipalities, communities and PROs, DFFE seeks to strengthen public awareness and encourage practical household and community action towards cleaner, healthier and more sustainable communities through transitioning towards a circular economy; an economy in which materials remain useful for as long as possible rather than being discarded after a single use.
Our environmental transition must therefore also be an economic transition that creates opportunities for communities. Clean neighbourhoods, cleaner air and economic opportunities should reinforce one another.
A SHARED RESPONSIBILITY
The management of waste and air pollution is a shared responsibility that requires collective action from government, communities, businesses and individuals.
Government has an important responsibility; municipalities must provide effective waste-management services; and enforce environmental legislation.
The collaborative approach between the 3 spheres of Government and Industry will ensure the provision of drop‑off or collection points, collaboration with local SMMEs by facilitating access to E-waste, and targeted awareness activities, we are working to embed responsible waste separation and recycling practices at household level.
Industry must comply with emission requirements and continuously invest in cleaner technologies.
Producers, through PROs must increasingly take responsibility for the products and packaging they place into the economy.
But communities also have an important role.
We must avoid illegal dumping.
We must not burn waste.
We must separate recyclable materials.
We must report environmental pollution.
And we must teach our children that protecting the environment is part of protecting their future.
At the same time, we recognise that we cannot simply tell communities not to burn or dump waste without addressing the circumstances that contribute to these practices.
Government must listen.
That is why today's event is a dialogue.
We want to hear directly from the people of Atteridgeville and Saulsville about the environmental challenges you experience and about the solutions that you believe can work in this community.
COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION MUST BE PART OF THE SOLUTION - A CALL TO ACTION FOR ATTERIDGEVILLE
Today, I therefore want us to leave this dialogue with a simple commitment:
Let Atteridgeville demonstrate what community-based environmental action can achieve.
Let us work together to stop illegal dumping.
Let us stop the burning of waste.
Let us strengthen recycling and recovery.
Let us support young people and community organisations that are developing environmental solutions.
Let us improve environmental awareness.
And let us ensure that residents know how and where to report pollution when it occurs.
Most importantly, let us recognise that every action we take to reduce pollution contributes to something bigger.
When we manage waste better, we protect our neighbourhoods.
When we stop burning waste, we protect our lungs.
When we reduce climate pollutants, we protect our planet.
And when communities, municipalities, provinces, national government, civil society and business work together, we create healthier and more resilient communities.
Conclusion
Programme Director,
The International Day of Clean Air for blue skies reminds us of a fundamental truth: Clean air is essential to life.
The air we breathe connects every household, every community and every generation. Our responsibility is therefore not only to address the pollution of today, but to build communities that are healthier and more resilient for tomorrow.
As we commemorate this day, let our message be clear:
Cleaner communities mean cleaner air.
Cleaner air means healthier people.
And clean-air action is climate action.
Together, we can turn our concern about pollution into practical action.
Together, we can protect the health of our communities.
And together, we can ensure cleaner air and a more climate-resilient future for generations to come.
I thank you.
#GovZAUpdates
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