Carlos Silva Filho Update on ISWA’s Campaign to Close the Dumpsites : ISWA BLOG: Close the Dumpsites, Clean the Oceans, Educate the Kids

ISWA’s campaign for the Closure of the World’s Biggest Dumpsites has reached a new stage as it has delivered a concrete result with the effective closure of the Estrutural dumpsite in Brasília, capital of Brazil.

Estrutural, the largest open dump in Latin America, and one of the key sites highlighted on the map of ISWA’s Roadmap for Closing Waste Dumpsites, was finally closed on 20 January 2018 (some details are presented in the article published in this WMW issue).

The Roadmap and the ISWA-led campaign were instrumental in this process of closing the Brasilia dumpsite, and the association will remain in a key supporting role to the government of Brasilia over the next ten years.

Unfortunately, waste management is still not considered a priority in most developing countries, where collection services are sporadic and unorganised, recycling is not conducted professionally and dumpsites can be found in almost every city as the easy and cheap option to dispose of whatever is discharged by the population.

The current inefficiency throughout the whole waste management system has a negative impact on the environment, largely on water bodies, affecting people’s health, even far away from the pollution sources. The 2016 Global Waste Management Outlook reported that 3 billion people worldwide have no access to basic waste services and the pollution caused by dumpsites nowadays kills more people than malaria.

The reason ISWA is working at a global level and developing several initiatives is to combat pollution caused by inadequate waste management in order to save people’s lives. Together with the Close Dumpsites campaign, the association is promoting the Scholarship Programme and the Marine Litter Task Force aiming to put an end to the waste crisis that pollutes our planet’s land, air and water.

The Scholarship Programme is currently being developed by ISWA in Nicaragua, under the coordination of Timothy Bouldry. The programme’s target is to help children who are sorting garbage at dumpsites to have a better future.

The Marine Litter Task Force has published a report that provides detailed evidence on the links between the lack of infrastructure and inappropriate waste management and the generation of ocean waste. The only way to turn the tide on marine litter is to tackle the problem at source. This means providing waste collection systems and adequate disposal infrastructure.

The success of such programmes is totally dependent on the level of engagement ISWA can obtain worldwide, not only from international institutions, governments and companies, but also from individuals who can join, support and contribute to the implementation and promotion of each action which, after all, is about people, not waste!

As a reader of WMW you can sign the online petition for the Closure of the Biggest Dumpsites, donate to the Scholarship Programme or contribute to the Marine Litter Task Force. It’s only one click away at www.iswa.org. Hurry up and help us make the world a better place.

Carlos Silva Filho, ISWA Vice President

Read More

First Taste of Success for ISWA’s Close the Dumpsites Campaign

Following the recent closure of the Estrutural dumpsite serving 5 million people in Brazil’s capital city, a partnership between ISWA and ABRELPE aims to ensure the closure of further dumpsites in the country.

Closing The World’s Biggest Dumpsites: ISWA Needs Your Support

We often talk about a “global waste emergency” and dumpsites represent one of the most shocking aspects of this emergency. ISWA is calling on everyone to sign our petition.

President's Blog: The War on Dumpsites is about People not Waste!

New ISWA President Antonis Mavropoulos reports on his trip to Nicaragua two days ago where he visited the kids from the ISWA Scholarship Programme, an encounter which obviously really touched him.