Jutta Gutberlet

Informal recycling and occupational health in Santo André, Brazil

The collection of recyclables is a widespread activity among urban poor, particularly in countries with large socio-economic disparities. The health of recyclers is at risk because of unsafe working conditions, socio-economic exclusion, and stigmatization. Our study focuses on health problems and occupational risks of informal recyclers (in Brazil known as catadores). In 2005 we conducted an in-depth socio-economic survey of 48 informal waste collectors in Santo André, Brazil. Almost all workers reported body pain or soreness in the back, legs, shoulders, and arms. Injuries, particularly involving the hands, are frequent. Flu and bronchitis are common, and one recycler had contracted Hepatitis-B. Policy makers at all government levels need to address the pressing health issues affecting large numbers of informal recyclers in Brazil and abroad. Recyclers need to be involved in the design of waste management policies, and the public must be educated about the important environmental service these people provide.

The effects of handling solid waste on the wellbeing of informal and organized recyclers: a review of the literature

Abstract Previous research has identified health issues in the formal, regulated solid waste collection sector, located primarily in the global North. Conversely, less information is available with regard to the health predicaments of informal, unaffiliated, and organized recyclers operating in regions of the global South. Estimated at 15 million people operating globally, informal recyclers perform a vital public service while working individually or within cooperatives.1 This review assesses, discusses, and compiles the physical and emotional health issues of individuals who are operating in this stigmatized sector. The study highlights the self-assessed and observed health risks. Findings were coded into a number of reacquiring themes: chemical hazards, infection, musculoskeletal damage, mechanical trauma, emotional vulnerabilities, and environmental contamination. The review showcases the encouraging significance of working as a member in a recycling cooperative as a means of alleviating health issues. The findings suggest the need for further qualitative research with informal recyclers and solid waste policy enforcement with public, commercial, and industrial cooperation in source separation.

Waste, poverty and recycling.

Environmental hazards as a consequence of mass consumption and waste disposal remain largely unconsidered in affluent societies. Resources embodied in waste are not recognized. In Latin America, Asia and Africa, in particular, an extensive informal sector is involved in the collecting and separating of recyclable materials. This widespread activity provides an insight into the resourcefulness of those involved in the collection, separation and commercialization of recyclables from the waste stream. Nevertheless, recyclers represent one of the most widely excluded, impoverished and disempowered segments of society. A new model of inclusive waste management, a radical approach capable of tackling poverty and contributing towards recovering environmental health should be established. Research results and community outreach experiences from the past five years have helped shape a definition for Participatory Sustainable Waste Management (PSWM), which has emerged as an alternative to conventional waste management. PSWM is defined as: ‘‘Solid waste recovery, reuse and recycling practices with organized and empowered recycling co-ops supported with public policies, embedded in solidarity economy and targeting social equity and environmental sustainability”. The concept combines social and environmental issues by addressing livelihood concerns, such as the generation of employment, increased income generation, improved occupational health, among others; and of course, the promotion of human development opportunities and environmental health in general. Inclusive waste management also endorses this definition and further underlines the co-management aspect of these innovative waste management approaches.

Solidarity economy and recycling co-ops in Sao Paulo: micro-credit to alleviate poverty

Lack of working capital hinders collective commercialisation of recyclables. Social exclusion and bureaucratic constraints prevent recyclers from obtaining official bank loans. As they continue to depend on intermediaries, the cycle of poverty, dependency, and exclusion is perpetuated. The article discusses collective commercialisation and the micro-credit fund created among 30 recycling groups in the Brazilian city of São Paulo. A committee of eight women recyclers manages this fund. The article contextualises reflections on empowerment and community-based development, applying the theoretical framework of social and solidarity economy. The author finally suggests that inclusive governance structures have the potential to generate greater justice and sustainability.

Who are our informal recyclers? An inquiry to uncover crisis and potential in Victoria, Canada

What is considered garbage embodies a recoverable economic value, and environmental cost if not recycled. Throughout the world, the often marginalised and impoverished population earns a living through informal recycling. This is also true for Victoria, British Columbia, one of the most affluent cities in Canada. This paper discusses results of a participatory socio-economic survey involving informal recyclers in Victoria, BC to determine their livelihood determinants. The findings reveal that “binning” is an important survival strategy to generate income. A new waste-management model that considers the social and environmental context is needed. Inclusive public policies can respond to the livelihood concerns outlined in this paper by facilitating access to recyclable materials, devising occupational safety improvements and educating about alternative strategies for resource recovery. This model can contribute to the overall sustainability of the community by reducing the waste of resources and people, empowering marginalised populations and reducing the environmental impacts of natural resource use and waste disposal.

Cooperative urban mining in Brazil: Collective practices in selective household waste collection and recycling

Solid waste is a major urban challenge worldwide and reclaiming the resources embedded in waste streams, involving organized recyclers, is a smart response to it. Informal and organized recyclers, mostly in the global south, already act as important urban miners in resource recovery. The paper describes the complex operations of recycling cooperatives and draws attention to their economic, environmental, and social contributions. A detailed discussion based on empirical data from the recycling network COOPCENT-ABC in metropolitan São Paulo, Brazil, contextualizes this form of urban mining. The analysis is situated within Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) and Ecological Economy (EE) theory. Current challenges related to planning, public policy, and the implementation of cooperative recycling are analysed on the level of individual recyclers, cooperatives, municipalities and internationally. There are still many hurdles for the informal, organized recycling sector to become recognized as a key player in efficient material separation and to up-scale these activities for an effective contribution to the SSE and EE. Policies need to be in place to guarantee fair and safe work relations. There is a win-win situation where communities and the environment will benefit from organized urban mining.

Contribution of cooperative sector recycling to greenhouse gas emissions reduction: A case study of Ribeirão Pires, Brazil

Solid waste, including municipal waste and its management, is a major challenge for most cities and among the key contributors to climate change. Greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced through recovery and recycling of resources from the municipal solid waste stream. In São Paulo, Brazil, recycling cooperatives play a crucial role in providing recycling services including collection, separation, cleaning, stocking, and sale of recyclable resources. The present research attempts to measure the greenhouse gas emission reductions achieved by the recycling cooperative Cooperpires, as well as highlight its socioeconomic benefits. Methods include participant observation, structured interviews, questionnaire application, and greenhouse gas accounting of recycling using a Clean Development Mechanism methodology. The results show that recycling cooperatives can achieve important energy savings and reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, and suggest there is an opportunity for Cooperpires and other similar recycling groups to participate in the carbon credit market. Based on these findings, the authors created a simple greenhouse gas accounting calculator for recyclers to estimate their emissions reductions.

Sustainability: a new paradigm for industrial production

Briefly discusses the industrial development process in Brazil by highlighting a few examples of its social and environmental implications. The current environmental crisis for which the industrial sector is co‐responsible puts evidence on the existing links between production and consumption cycles. In order to identify impacts at their origin, production processes and products need to be re‐assessed. Proposes a paradigm shift with the corporate world internalising the sustainability concept based on dematerialisation (tendency to use less material and energy inputs per unit of output) and eco‐efficiency (strategy to provide goods and services while continuously reducing ecological impacts).

Participatory Research Revealing the Work and Occupational Health Hazards of Cooperative Recyclers in Brazil

Although informal waste collectors are sometimes organized in cooperatives, their working conditions remain extremely precarious and unsafe. The paper discusses the findings of action oriented, participatory qualitative research with several recycling groups in the metropolitan region of São Paulo, Brazil. During workshops with the recyclers mapping, acting, and drawing methods helped reveal health hazards from collection, separation and transportation of recyclable materials. Major health problems relate to chemical and biological hazards, musculoskeletal damage, mechanical trauma and poor emotional wellbeing. The recent federal legislation on solid waste management opens new avenues for the inclusion of recycling cooperatives in selective waste collection. Nevertheless, we express the need to consider the distinctive characteristics and vulnerabilities of recycling groups, when developing safer work environments in these social businesses. We also suggest that the workspace be ergonomically organized and that public awareness campaigns about selective waste collection are conducted regularly to increase the quality of source separation. The introduction of electric hand pushed carts can further reduce health strains. This research has produced a better understanding of the work of the recyclers and related health risks. The interactive qualitative research methodology has allowed for the co-creation and mobilization of specific knowledge on health and safety in recycling cooperatives.

Reclaiming and recirculating urban natures: integrated organic waste management in Diadema, Brazil

Although developing world cities are increasingly the focus of urban political ecology perspectives, waste remains an underexplored aspect. This paper helps to fill this thematic gap by using urban political ecology as a lens for analyzing flows of food waste in the Brazilian city of Diadema. The marginal urban poor in Diadema, as in most other cities in Brazil, lack access to affordable fresh fruit and vegetables yet must cope with a disproportionate accumulation of uncollected waste. Integrated organic waste management, consisting of decentralized household-waste collection by organized recycling groups, waste processing, and the utilization of food waste for composting and urban food production, is presented as way of reclaiming and recirculating urban natures for potentially positive socioecological change. However, it is a process characterized by conflict and potential exploitation, while broader structural conditions constrain the ability of the system to offer an alternative to existing waste-management models. The paper concludes with a call for further action-oriented research within urban political ecology to reveal opportunities for new socioecological futures which should occur at multiple scales and emerge from the lived realities of marginalized actors such as catadores (recyclers) and urban gardeners.