Nepal's informal waste management sector, operating for over 50 years, is a deeply ingrained part of the country's waste system, providing a crucial and often unacknowledged service.
Here are the primary benefits and drawbacks of this sector:
Benefits:
- Job Creation and Livelihoods
- The informal sector provides economic opportunities and job opportunities to a large number of people, particularly those with low education or unskilled labor.
- It serves as a survival strategy for many poor and marginalized social groups, providing them with a source of income.
- Waste picking is often an inherited job or an accessible entry point for migrant workers due to its flexible nature and minimal educational or training requirements.
- Significant Material Recovery and Recycling
- Informal waste workers are crucial for collecting and recovering high recyclable materials from households, diverting a significant amount of waste from landfills.
- They collect, sort, and recycle valuable materials such as plastics, metals, and paper. For example, a 2019 study found that waste pickers in Kathmandu recovered over 10 tons of plastic waste per day.
- This sector plays a vital role in supplying raw materials to the formal recycling industries both in Nepal and India. Nepal reportedly recycles or reuses approximately 53% of its scrap waste, mostly through the informal sector.
- Environmental and Economic Contributions
- The informal sector contributes significantly to a circular economy by keeping materials in use and reducing the volume of waste sent to landfills.
- By diverting waste from landfills, they help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, such as methane, and lessen the environmental impact.
- They save local authorities considerable costs that would otherwise be spent on waste collection and final disposal, estimated to be 20% or more. In Kathmandu Metropolitan City alone, their activities are estimated to save the national economy 371 million Nepali Rupees annually.
- Adaptability and Filling Gaps
- The informal sector fills critical gaps left by inadequate municipal waste management systems, especially in areas where formal services are lacking.
Drawbacks and Challenges:
- Lack of Formal Recognition and Policy Exclusion
- Despite their essential contributions, waste pickers lack legislative recognition in Nepal's Solid Waste Management Act of 2011 and are largely excluded from official planning processes and policy discussions.
- Government policies often adopt an attitude of neglect or indifference towards the informal sector, focusing on taxation or regulation without offering sufficient support or inclusion measures.
- Hazardous Working and Living Conditions
- Informal waste workers operate in precarious and unsanitary conditions without proper protective equipment, exposing them to harmful substances, sharp objects, medical waste, and toxic chemicals.
- This leads to high risks of injury and long-term health issues, including respiratory diseases.
- Many live in poor housing conditions lacking basic amenities like continuous access to water, electricity, and sewage, often in informal settlements near riverbanks, which are prone to natural disasters.
- Economic Instability and Exploitation
- Income is often unstable, dependent on the volume and type of recyclable materials collected, and susceptible to market fluctuations.
- Waste pickers often earn minimal wages, with scrap dealers sometimes exploiting them by paying below market value for collected materials.
- The increasing number of informal waste workers has led to increased competition and decreased individual earnings.
- Social Stigma and Marginalization
- Waste pickers face significant social stigma, misbehavior, and humiliation due to their association with waste and their low social status.
- There's a strong caste dimension to waste work, traditionally associated with "untouchable" castes, which perpetuates social exclusion.
- They are often excluded from social protection schemes, health insurance, and other benefits.
- Lack of Organization and Support Systems
- A significant challenge is the lack of formal organization among waste workers into cooperatives or associations, which limits their collective voice and power to advocate for better conditions or engage in policy-making.
- Despite some support from NGOs and social enterprises, these efforts are often limited in scale and sustainability without complementary government backing.
- Threats from Modernization and Privatization
- Government plans to modernize waste management, often through large-scale public-private partnerships with transnational corporations, pose a direct threat to the livelihoods and existence of the informal sector.
- Such approaches risk overlooking the informal sector's existing knowledge, experience, and contributions, prioritizing technological solutions over integrated, inclusive systems.
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