Waste manager Pikitup’s spokesperson Muzi Mkhwanazi has confirmed to Engineering News Online that the company has had challenges with its wheelie bin supplier, resulting in a shortage of about 22 000 bins.
Contracts with new service providers have, however, been entered into.
Pikitup expects the supply chain management process to be finalised within the next few days and an order for new bins to be placed before February 15.
Mkhwanazi said such an order normally takes an average of ten working days before delivery and Pikitup expects bins to be made available to Johannesburg households by the end of February.
He further noted that, as a result of many reports from citizens of bins being stolen, Pikitup’s future plan is to fit bins with tracking devices.
However, it remains the responsibility of the bin owner to safeguard their bins, the company said.
“Pikitup urges owners to safeguard their bins by ensuring that, once collection has been done, the bins are returned to their yards,” he said.
Further, Pikitup urged residents to play their part in keeping the city clean, by refraining from littering and dumping waste illegally.
Pikitup has 42 garden sites spread across the city, which can be used to dispose of waste. The company also has landfill sites that residents and businesses can use to dispose of waste.