Twenty-first century human behaviour continues to escalate activities that result in environmental damage. This calls for environmentally friendly solutions, such as waste recycling and handling, to deal with the increased amount of waste, especially plastics. The plastic materials manufacturing sector is booming, particularly packaging; while only a fraction of its waste is recycled, another fraction is destroyed, and the larger part continues to pollute the environment. In addition to other waste disposal activities, destroying plastic or incineration (which could be for energy recovery) is usually subjected to strict legal requirements because of its effect on the environment. However plastic is destroyed or disposed of, it poses a serious challenge in both the short term and the long term to humans and their natural environment if the process is not efficiently managed. This article describes how a growing amount of plastic waste is disposed of haphazardly in South African townships, while most of the inhabitants are not aware or do not care about the adverse environmental and health effects of these actions. This article examines the environmental and health effects of poor plastic disposal in South African townships as it is in other developing countries to sensitise the citizens to the significance of reducing plastic waste quantities, which will downplay their impact on human health and the environment.

The discovery of plastic by humankind is fast becoming a challenge as the end-of-life disposal of plastic continues to be a discourse on the global platform. This discussion results from several findings that the additives in plastic distress both land and marine life by contributing to organic pollutants when the plastic waste is disposed of improperly. With a growing population in sub-Saharan Africa, managing waste generally, and plastic waste, in particular, represents a continuous challenge. With only between 15–25% of its plastic waste recycled, the larger proportion of waste is either burnt openly or disposed of in open spaces or landfills, where the additives pollute the environment. Moreover, some of the waste finds its way into waterways through estuaries into global water networks and continues to cause harm to man through the food chain. This article examines the literature to highlight the environmental and health impact of plastic waste pollution in sub-Saharan Africa, and it proposes mitigation strategies to reduce the critical consequences of plastic waste pollution.

The rapid increase in volume and variety of solid waste as a result of continuous economic growth, urbanization, and industrialization has become an intractable problem for the public and private sectors, making it difficult to ensure effective and sustainable waste management. The study sought to understand the perspective of Nelson Mandela Bay Municipal residents on their perceived influence of municipal waste management on economic development. The study used a quantitative techniques approach, with a structured questionnaire. Data was collected from 255 respondents. The quantitative question aimed to determine if the influence was positive or negative, and the Likert scale question had a scale of 1 to 5. This research identified various types of waste, assessed challenges, and evaluated waste's potential for resource creation. The study concluded that municipal waste includes organic, paper, plastic, metal, glass, food, garden, hazardous, construction, demolition, and non-recyclable waste. Environmental pollution is a major challenge, and 26 factors positively influence waste to wealth. Waste to wealth can be achieved through social behavior, education/knowledge, MSWM governance, and economic feasibility for MSWM. The research also highlighted the importance of land attributes, budget allocation, trained personnel, and government regulations. The framework proposed aims to minimize urban poverty while preserving the environment and supporting the present urban economy. Urban communities can utilize solid waste management as a mechanism to foster economic development. The fundamental question is whether stakeholders will continue to ignore waste's potential demands and benefits for urban economic growth.

Solid waste is a global challenge that is more pronounced in developing countries such as South Africa, where its management is a major concern. The government has recently made a concerted effort to engage the public in sustainable waste management practices to resolve the crisis occasioned by the challenge. This chapter investigates waste management practices in the South African Township of Ekuphumleni and relied on a sample of 353 households to obtain some primary data with a questionnaire on the subject matter. The data collected was analyzed using “R,” and the results were presented using charts, tables, and figures. Data collected revealed that waste paper, cans, used plastics, and bottles were major waste components generated by the respondents and these wastes were generally stored unseparated domestically in plastic bags and home garbage can. Furthermore, the respondent indicated that the municipality does a door-to-door collection of their waste and they were unwilling to pay for waste collection services. While the waste management practice is in tandem with the municipal system, the study recommends that the respondents must be educated on circularity, which will ensure reducing, reusing, recycling, and recovering waste and further aid economic empowerment.