Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Like a Big Garbage Dump

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CARACAS, Oct 27 2008 (IPS) - Venezuela produces some 27,000 tons of garbage each day, and most of it ends up in one of the 800 open-air dumps, which contaminate water, land, flora and fauna and contribute to the spread of disease among the population. That is the warning coming from María Eugenia Gil, coordinator of the environmental foundation Aguaclara (Clear Water).

“The communities at highest risk are those who live next to the dumps or work there as classifiers to recover and recycle waste. Among the, according to a study by the governmental Fundacomún, eight to 29 percent are children and 17 to 31 percent are women,” Gil told Tierramérica.

The activist is advocating a law on garbage and solid waste, which has been awaiting the signature of the Venezuelan president for four years.