Africa-Press – Angola. Not even the space’s nauseating smell can scare away residents, who blame hunger on the willpower to risk their lives. However, between searches and rummaging, what is discarded as trash ends up becoming a source of food for hundreds of families who depend on the landfill for their survival.
It was still early when the OPAIS newspaper report went to the Mulenvos Sanitary Landfill, which is the main urban solid waste management infrastructure in the province of Luanda, located in the municipality of Mulenvos.
Upon arrival, the enormous view, from any angle, reveals the giant facility designed to receive and treat waste in a safe and environmentally correct manner, minimizing negative impacts on the environment and public health, with a capacity of 10.342 million tons of urban solid waste and spread over an area of 297.2 hectares.
Every day, hundreds of families, especially young people aged 15 to 35, fight over the large amounts of trash deposited here, looking for the best things to take home, including ferrous materials, clothing, shoes, and, above all, food.
Waste arrives at the site in large quantities, via trucks that, in a line, funnel through the main entrance gate fully loaded to the top of the dump, where it is deposited under the watchful eye of the locals who wake up early to reach the landfill.
However, reaching the top of the dump isn’t easy. It’s necessary to climb the high altitudes via mountain routes. The route is dangerous, especially during the rainy season, due to the slippery ground and rocks that often become loose, causing falls and injuries.
Despite the area being surrounded by security agents, locals still manage to breach the barrier through exposed points that provide access to the Sanitary Landfill.
Meanwhile, once there, residents from various surrounding areas, such as Paraíso, Belo Monte, Rastas and Papá Simão, rummaged through the trash with their bare hands, without any kind of protection, in a battle of every man for himself.
The struggle for goods is titanic and fiercely contested. Food is the most sought-after commodity, often involving fights and injuries when it appears, due to its scarcity to meet the vast needs of those who risk their lives, facing various dangers, to find something to eat.
Amidst so many dangers, not even the space’s nauseating smell can scare away the needy, who justify hunger as the willpower to risk their lives. However, between searches and rummaging, what is deposited as trash ends up becoming the source of food for hundreds of families who depend on the dump for their survival. Pasta, milk, canned goods, sausages (chorizo, sausages, ham, and cheese), cookies, milk, and fruit are among the products most frequently collected from that enormous dump, all in a deplorable state for consumption. Yet, even so, the products, most of which are past their expiration dates, are unearthed with great difficulty and in precarious condition.
After being collected, the products are washed and taken home to support hundreds of families who say they have no alternative but to rely on the waste that is disposed of at the landfill.
The justifications for the fight
José Pedro, 18, is one of the residents who climb the landfill every day in search of food. The young man, who lives with his parents, cites hunger as the main reason for surviving on garbage, despite all the dangers involved. As he explained, his family survives on garbage and is also able to pay for school, considering the social hardships he faces due to his parents’ lack of employment.
According to José Pedro, the family’s minimum subsistence is obtained from the food collected from the landfill, and the rest is sold in nearby markets such as Praça Nova, Ponte Partida, and Praça do Papa Simão.
“We take home what we collect here. But there are also products we prefer to sell because women buy them. It’s risky, but it’s our way of life,” he said.
Same story and purpose
Domingos Francisco also survives on the landfill’s trash. Like the other kids, the 16-year-old said he lives with his family and takes home everything he collects to help feed the family.
“Everything I collect here, I help with at home. When there’s no food, I collect iron and plastic to weigh. The important thing is not to stand still,” he stressed.
Bypassing security to survive
Divaldo and Gaspar are also among the group of young people who survive on the landfill’s garbage. Divaldo, 20, said he doesn’t go to school and relies on collecting trash from the public dump to help his mother, the main breadwinner.
When asked if he was not worried about his health, given the difficulties the space presents, the young man said he was used to it and that it took him years to adapt to the dangers the landfill presents.
As he explained, despite the police and security agents maintaining security at the site, they still managed to find a way to bypass the control and invade the space.
“It’s not easy to get something every day. The police are always checking on us. And anyone seen inside is arrested. But even so, because of hunger, we always manage to escape,” he said.
A cry for help
The search for food at the Mulenvos Landfill is not a new phenomenon. According to local residents and employees, it has been an ongoing occurrence for years, given the vulnerable coverage of the facility.
However, with families’ increasing financial difficulties, locals say, the situation has worsened and many citizens find the perimeter their only source of survival.
In conversation with the newspaper OPAÍS, Tiago, one of the former garbage collectors at the site, said that every day, despite the security measures, hundreds of citizens invade the site, given that the fence does not cover the entire area.
The 34-year-old said he has no interest in leaving the space due to the amount of materials he finds there for recycling. But he regrets the fact that the place is increasingly receiving school-age children, who spend all their time there looking for a living.
Experienced in garbage collection, Tiago, who also calls himself a social activist, asks families and authorities for help in helping minors escape a life he considers precarious and quite destructive.
“This is not a place for minors. It’s a very hard life. I come here every day myself. But I don’t like seeing children collecting and eating garbage. It’s difficult. The government has to help in this situation,” he lamented.
Expert warns of health risks
General practitioner Ventura Paim warned of the dangers of visiting the landfill without following safety and hygiene procedures, especially for minors, whom he considers a vulnerable group.
According to the expert, the group of citizens who frequent the landfill’s garbage dump run the risk of contracting various infections that can put their health at risk.
According to Ventura Paim, consuming expired food is harmful to health and can cause poisoning with complications that can lead to death.
To avoid the worst, the expert calls on authorities to prohibit people from accessing the landfill in order to preserve human life, especially that of minors.
As he explained, due to the large amount of solid waste, landfills produce various microorganisms and bacteria that cannot come into contact with the human body without harming health.
“Security needs to be strengthened and strangers, especially minors, must be prevented from entering the landfill. Otherwise, in the short, medium, or long term, we will have many citizens with health problems resulting from unprotected use of the landfill.”
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