Viva scavengers

Latin America with 524 million population, produces about 130 million tons wastes per year. Brazil with 1.152 kg/day/person wastes stands for haft of this wastes. This wastes is practically dumped, and just about 2% is recycled. This recycling is carried out mainly by scavengers that are about 100,000 families in Latin America, of which 10-30% are children and are working with slavery conditions, as we heard from our friends both at Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo universities. Recognition of their work by the governments in the region and more attention in the media and help by people, may help to increase their recycling from 2% to the corresponding level in Sweden which is about 35%.

(Treatment and final deposition of wastes in Brazil, Ref: Alvaro Cantanhede, UFRJ, Brazil)