Introduction
What is commonly known as garbage, is actually a mixture of different products that, once used by people, are discarded, thus exhausting the possibility of being used again as well as directly impacting the environment.
Latin America has been influenced by a short-term economic development model, characterized by the inefficient use of natural resources and by the inequality in the distribution of benefits; As a consequence, the countries of the region find it difficult to consolidate alternatives for sustainable development, both environmentally and socially (Morán & Brasil, 1995).
Faced with the development model and the urbanization process in Latin America and the Caribbean, in the mid-eighties and nineties the problems of public services deepened, highlighting the incapacity and inefficiency of the State and the lack of operation of local governments to respond to the demands of urban services. ("Citizen participation in the management of urban solid waste," 2008).
Background
Until before the 1970s, the solid waste generated by Mexico City occupied an insignificant place in the analysis of the priority problem of the city, not only because the majority of the population thought little about the pollution problems they caused, but also because its disposal was carried out without apparent problems, or at least, without the bulk of the population knowing about it.
For several years, the management of Urban Solid Waste (MSW) in Mexico and in all its communities has been a growing problem associated with different but serious problems not only environmental but also health. The Comprehensive Solid Waste Management (GIRS) can be defined as the selection, application of techniques, technologies and management programs in accordance with specific objectives and goals of solid waste management. (Mario, Technological, Environmental, Hu, & Planning, 1997)
One of the most pressing problems of municipal responsibility is the management of MSW, which not only consume a large part of municipal resources, but are also presenting serious pollution problems due to the increasing demand for landfills and incinerators necessary to try reduce the environmental burden that MSW is generating.
The municipal authorities are immersed in an endless race and without possibilities of being victorious; Cities have a much higher capacity to generate waste than local corporations have to manage in a rational, economically profitable and environmentally acceptable way, the increasing amounts of MSW generated in the city by consumers every day.
Municipal Solid Waste MSW, is a heterogeneous mass composed of waste from homes, commerce, industry (small industry and crafts) and institutions and the waste resulting from the sweeping of roads and public areas, whose management is in charge of municipal authorities. (Jaramillo, 1999).
Reality
It is known that the municipal authorities only make their best efforts to keep the population out of the collection system, a situation that responds to political, organizational, planning or convenience factors.
The provision of urban services respond to the needs shared by all citizens whose satisfaction must be guaranteed through the exercise of public power, that is, state power as the only instance to which it can legitimately be attributed, which can be, and in fact they are, varied and involve a range that goes from the simple establishment of rules that regulate their provision. ("Citizen participation in the management of urban solid waste," 2008)
In a general sense, the increase in people's living standards is directly proportional to the increase in their waste generation (Francisco & Rodríguez, 2010). Without a doubt, it is clear to us that we become consumer beings since the well-being of people is linked to increasing the deterioration of the environment.
The problem of environmental degradation has become one of the most critical for everyday life in cities. Citizen participation in environmental management is conceived as an expansion of the public domain, with the purpose of creating more mature societies aware of the collective challenges and the responsibilities of citizens. (“Citizen participation in the management of urban solid waste, ”2008)
In principle, waste management is deployed in an environment where the objectives are based on the fulfillment of a service rather than an environmental concern. In addition, a complex economic, social, political and cultural panorama (economic crisis, corruption, patronage, cronyism, among others) profoundly influences what to do with garbage and what routes should be adopted. From the inability of the authorities to comply with the collection and final disposal service, combined with other social issues, a large sector of the population has emerged that helps in processes such as collection and separation: the informal sector, in Mexico known as scavengers (Guzmán Chávez & Macías Manzanares, 2012)
A bad practice for the final disposal of MSW can cause harmful effects to the environment and health, such as those described below:
- As a direct consequence of an uncontrolled dumping or improper disposal of waste, coupled with hot conditions in most of the Mexican territory and high rainfall in the rainy season, the population is exposed to a high risk due to possible infections and epidemics transmitted by air, water and vectors of harmful fauna.On the other hand, the disposal of waste in sites that do not have an impermeable subsoil or engineering works to prevent the flow of pollutants into the aquifer, can affect the contamination of the ground and the water table, which translates into a risk of damage to the ecosystem, natural resources and finally, indirectly, to human health.Another risk of improper management is the possibility of fires, whether intentionally,derived from human carelessness or even by the self-burning of the garbage, thus causing the deterioration of the soil and vegetation, as well as air pollution with smoke, ash and toxic gases, among others. Dust and light waste raised By the wind, as well as the materials carried by possible surface runoff, they can reach the farmlands and nearby roads, hindering agricultural activity and vehicular traffic, together with the unsanitary effect and unpleasant aesthetic impact that this produces. Solid urban waste that has a high content of organic matter (more than 50% in Mexico), leads to the generation of undesirable liquids and gases, which means a risk, direct or indirect,to public health depending on the contact of the population with said emissions. The high percentage of organic matter among the waste favors the proliferation of rodents and insects and even carrion birds, associated with the spread of diseases and epidemics. And, finally, There is a negative aesthetic impact on the landscape around the final disposal sites without adequate control, which affects not only the people who live in the area, but also the socio-economic added value of the region. in urban centers, especially that related to air, water and soil, it imposes enormous challenges for society (Valencia, Castaño, Sánchez, & Bonilla, 2010).associated with the spread of diseases and epidemics And, finally, there is a negative aesthetic impact on the landscape around the final disposal sites without adequate control, which affects not only the people who live in the area, but also the socio-economic added value of the region Pollution management in urban centers, especially that related to air, water and soil, imposes enormous challenges for society (Valencia, Castaño, Sánchez, & Bonilla, 2010).associated with the spread of diseases and epidemics And, finally, there is a negative aesthetic impact on the landscape around the final disposal sites without adequate control, which affects not only the people who live in the area, but also the socio-economic added value of the region Pollution management in urban centers, especially that related to air, water and soil, imposes enormous challenges for society (Valencia, Castaño, Sánchez, & Bonilla, 2010).especially the one related to air, water and soil, imposes enormous challenges for society (Valencia, Castaño, Sánchez, & Bonilla, 2010).especially the one related to air, water and soil, imposes enormous challenges for society (Valencia, Castaño, Sánchez, & Bonilla, 2010).
This context has demonstrated the fact that the design of a solid waste management system must be carried out carefully and adapted to local conditions, where the recovery of resources from MSW can and must play an important role in it. Also, and perhaps most importantly: the selected technologies must be compatible with the potential of manpower to operate and maintain them, the possibility of the communities to finance them and with the global consent of the community, conditions that must not be overlooked. or inadequately emphasized in the technical analysis of systems (Mario et al., 1997)
The establishment of an adequate management system for MSW in developing countries has been quite difficult, in part due to the scarcity of studies related to the chemical composition of these wastes, as well as the gases and leachates they produce. generate (Buenrostro et al. 2001). The different communities in the country have not yet achieved a comprehensive solution to the problem of solid waste, although some notable aspects are observed, none has a structured medium and long-term approach that guarantees the mitigation of the environmental impacts of the waste from their territory.
The specialists, whether from the public or private sector, tend to express skepticism and resignation in the face of the process of environmental degradation; Their diagnoses seem to indicate that the region has begun to show interest in the formulation of environmental policies, their normative validation and in the creation of institutional systems for environmental management, but these steps are not reflected in improvements to the environment or in people's quality of life (Morán & Brasil, 1995)
The economic, technological, educational, social and cultural gap that exists between countries of the “first” and “third” world marks an important contrast in how waste management is managed in each of these nations. In industrialized countries, waste management results in effective maneuvers by having the relevant legal frameworks and the education and information necessary to comply with environmental regulations. (Guzmán Chávez & Macías Manzanares, 2012)
However, the actions promoted by the government, including the establishment of standards, will not achieve a decrease in environmental pollution proportional to the rate that it occurs if the participation of the sectors and actors that contribute to pollution and in whose hands is not guaranteed. are in the same way, to a large extent, the solutions. For this reason, co-responsibility is a fundamental aspect to achieve the proposed goals that contribute to the sustainable development of the country. (Valencia et al., 2010)
A proposal for a comprehensive MSW management policy should be raised as far as possible, trying to respect the hierarchies of reducing, reusing, recycling, treating and disposing, they are brought together from two approaches or perspectives: the preventive one that encompasses the hierarchies of reducing, reusing and recycling, and which aims to avoid or minimize the volumes of waste generation mainly through an assignment of responsibility to the producers; and the corrective one, which includes the hierarchies of treating and disposing, and which will refer to reducing the costs of final treatment and minimizing the risks associated with the waste already generated, by making an adequate collection, transportation, treatment and final disposal. (Ferrer, 2002)
In relation to environmental education and the development of a new citizen awareness regarding environmental problems, it was stated that it is important that schools, through the Ministry of Public Education, incorporate into their curricula an environmental training component to teach children their responsibilities in waste management, the separation of materials and other actions of citizen participation. (“Citizen participation in the management of solid urban waste,” 2008)
Undoubtedly, an example of the work carried out is the advance in regulations to prevent air pollution, the process of modifying regulations to prevent contamination of water resources as well as the identification of the type and quantity of waste generated, and the promotion of patterns that change the unsustainable patterns of production and consumption existing in the country.
Conclusions
Although it is true that there are many causes that can determine the certainty of MSW management, it is necessary to mature and ecologically plan the environmental reality that surrounds us in its natural and social dimension, identifying the problems of today and tomorrow.
For this, awareness must lead us to formulate policies, risk strategies, legislate, design institutional systems and plan concrete environmental actions that transcend interdisciplinary to achieve Comprehensive Management of Solid Waste.
Analyzing the facts indicates that the task has not been completed or easy, that we are on the way, in the search for solutions but that the important thing for the moment is that we are working on it.
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