Kruger National Park launches pilot recycling project to advance circular economy

SOUTH AFRICA – Kruger National Park has launched a new recycling pilot project aimed at strengthening circular economy practices while significantly reducing waste sent to landfill from one of South Africa’s most visited conservation areas.

The initiative, a collaboration between South African National Parks (SANParks) and packaging producer responsibility organization Petco, seeks to establish a scalable and sustainable waste management model within the park.

The pilot has been rolled out at the Tshokwane picnic site near Skukuza in the southern Marula region, a high-traffic area frequented by day visitors.

During the recent festive season alone, Tshokwane recorded sales of more than 43,000 food and beverage items, resulting in the recovery of over half a tonne of recyclable packaging through the new system.

According to SANParks, day visitors account for more than 70% of gate traffic into Kruger National Park, making picnic sites critical intervention points for improving waste management outcomes.

“These sites play a major role in waste generation, and they present an opportunity to influence visitor behaviour at scale,” said Dr Danny Govender, SANParks’ general manager for sustainable development and management.

At the centre of the initiative is a colour-coded, three-bin separation-at-source system designed to be both intuitive for visitors and resistant to wildlife interference.

Green bins are designated for recyclables, grey for non-recyclables, and brown for compostable organic waste.

Prior to the pilot, waste was manually sorted across multiple sites, often resulting in contamination and lower recycling recovery rates.

Petco CEO Telly Chauke said the project aligns with South Africa’s Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations, which require producers to take responsibility for packaging materials after use.

“Our mandate is to ensure that packaging placed on the market by our members is collected and recycled. Enabling clean separation at source in a complex environment like Kruger protects material value and improves recycling outcomes,” he noted.

To address the park’s unique environmental challenges, Petco partnered with Pioneer Plastics to develop a robust, baboon-proof bin system.

The 240-litre bins are manufactured from UV- and impact-resistant LLDPE plastic and anchored onto concrete slabs to withstand tampering by animals such as baboons, hyenas, and honey badgers.

Tourism and hospitality group Tourvest, a long-standing SANParks concession partner, has also backed the initiative.

Regional operations manager Henry Daschner said data generated from the pilot would help guide future waste management and commercial practices within the park.

The project will next be expanded to additional picnic sites, including Nkuhlu along the Sabie River and Afsaal near Malelane gate.

The Kruger initiative follows similar waste separation and recycling pilots being introduced at other high-footfall public spaces across South Africa, as industry stakeholders increasingly focus on circular economy solutions in tourism, hospitality, and conservation environments.

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