This study examined the level of awareness, knowledge and practices of primary and secondary schools students with regard to waste management. Only a limited number of studies were found to evaluate school student’s awareness, knowledge and practice of waste management in South Africa. Literature was reviewed dealing with waste management awareness, knowledge and practices of school students and discussed at the hand of the principles, objectives and targets of the South African Government towards waste and waste management. Using a structured, self-administered questionnaire, a total of 815 students were surveyed from four primary schools and three secondary schools from the Embalenhle and Secunda area Govan Mbeki Municipality, Mpumalanga South Africa. The data were analysed by the use of descriptive statistics including frequency count, percentage, mean and standard deviation. Other analyses employed included two-way frequency tables with Pearson Chisquare test, Phi coefficient, in order to determine the significant relationship between students’ socio-demographic variables. The study showed that the students were obviously aware of concerns with waste and waste management practices in their schools and local environment. It was also apparent the school students had an acute awareness that poor waste management would have a negative impact on the country as well as on them as the individual. This prominent awareness was however not evident in the students’ waste management practices. Good waste management practices activities were minimal at both the school and home environment. Since school students are seen as one of the key agent of change to work towards a more sustainable future, they should be engaged as young as possible and given a quality array of continuous learning to improve their knowledge on environmental problems such as poor waste management. Improved knowledge would contribute to improved environmental awareness and a pro-environmental attitude. The critical recommendations of the study are that the South African Government will have to intensify the research to better understand the needs of children to environmental matters such as waste management. / M. Environmental Management, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

This study examined the level of awareness, knowledge and practices of primary and secondary schools students with regard to waste management. Only a limited number of studies were found to evaluate school student’s awareness, knowledge and practice of waste management in South Africa. Literature was reviewed dealing with waste management awareness, knowledge and practices of school students and discussed at the hand of the principles, objectives and targets of the South African Government towards waste and waste management. Using a structured, self-administered questionnaire, a total of 815 students were surveyed from four primary schools and three secondary schools from the Embalenhle and Secunda area Govan Mbeki Municipality, Mpumalanga South Africa. The data were analysed by the use of descriptive statistics including frequency count, percentage, mean and standard deviation. Other analyses employed included two-way frequency tables with Pearson Chisquare test, Phi coefficient, in order to determine the significant relationship between students’ socio-demographic variables. The study showed that the students were obviously aware of concerns with waste and waste management practices in their schools and local environment. It was also apparent the school students had an acute awareness that poor waste management would have a negative impact on the country as well as on them as the individual. This prominent awareness was however not evident in the students’ waste management practices. Good waste management practices activities were minimal at both the school and home environment. Since school students are seen as one of the key agent of change to work towards a more sustainable future, they should be engaged as young as possible and given a quality array of continuous learning to improve their knowledge on environmental problems such as poor waste management. Improved knowledge would contribute to improved environmental awareness and a pro-environmental attitude. The critical recommendations of the study are that the South African Government will have to intensify the research to better understand the needs of children to environmental matters such as waste management. / M. Environmental Management, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

In order to address the growing waste concerns facing South Africa, the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) published the National Waste Management Strategy in 2012. The ultimate aim of the strategy is to effect the realisation of the objectives of the National Environmental Management Waste Act (NEMWA). The NEMWA is a sector environmental law based on the waste management hierarchy and its provisions apply to waste management activities in all three government spheres amongst others. The NWMS provides for eight distinct goals with accompanying targets to be met by 2016. Some of these goals and targets speak directly to the solid waste management mandate of local government. Concerns about the capacity of municipalities to see the execution of this mandate however, raise questions about the likelihood of some NWMS goals and targets being met by 2016. The North West Province serves as a case in point where recent reports by the office of the Auditor General have highlighted significant non-compliance in local government with the provisions of the existing waste law and policy framework of South Africa. It appears form these reports that a number of performance gaps and capacity constraints exist as far as it concerns municipal solid waste management. Against this back ground the study questions the governance strategies necessary within the municipalities of the North West Province to: a) address the existing performance gaps and capacity constraints and b) progressively move towards meeting the NWMS goals and targets as far as it concerns solid waste management. The study will explore the objectives, goals and targets of the NWMS against the background of the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA) and NEMWA, with a specific focus on solid waste management. The study will further review the documented performance gaps and capacity constraints as a far as it concerns solid waste management in municipalities in the North West province, specifically. / M. Environmental Management, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

In order to address the growing waste concerns facing South Africa, the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) published the National Waste Management Strategy in 2012. The ultimate aim of the strategy is to effect the realisation of the objectives of the National Environmental Management Waste Act (NEMWA). The NEMWA is a sector environmental law based on the waste management hierarchy and its provisions apply to waste management activities in all three government spheres amongst others. The NWMS provides for eight distinct goals with accompanying targets to be met by 2016. Some of these goals and targets speak directly to the solid waste management mandate of local government. Concerns about the capacity of municipalities to see the execution of this mandate however, raise questions about the likelihood of some NWMS goals and targets being met by 2016. The North West Province serves as a case in point where recent reports by the office of the Auditor General have highlighted significant non-compliance in local government with the provisions of the existing waste law and policy framework of South Africa. It appears form these reports that a number of performance gaps and capacity constraints exist as far as it concerns municipal solid waste management. Against this back ground the study questions the governance strategies necessary within the municipalities of the North West Province to: a) address the existing performance gaps and capacity constraints and b) progressively move towards meeting the NWMS goals and targets as far as it concerns solid waste management. The study will explore the objectives, goals and targets of the NWMS against the background of the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA) and NEMWA, with a specific focus on solid waste management. The study will further review the documented performance gaps and capacity constraints as a far as it concerns solid waste management in municipalities in the North West province, specifically. / M. Environmental Management, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014