making a living on landfills

Tai Lien hiep Xu ly Chat thai ran Soc Trang, moi ngay co khoang 200 tan rac thai tu khap noi do ve. Ben canh khoi luong rac khong lo, noi day con la nguon song duy nhat cua khoang 20 ho dan.

At the Soc Trang solid waste treatment society, about 200 tons of waste are dumped from all over every day. In addition to the huge amount of garbage, this is also the only source of life for about 20 households.

Nhung nguoi nhat rac o day, moi nguoi mot hoan canh, mot so phan, nhung deu co diem chung la su ngheo kho, khong dat dai, nghe nghiep.

The people who pick up trash here, each person has a different situation, a different fate, but all have in common poverty, no land, no job.

Ba Son Kien nam nay 63 tuoi nhung co hon phan nua cuoc doi lam nghe nhat rac. Hien nay con va chau ba cung chon bai rac la chon muu sinh. “Minh gia roi muon di lam o dau cung kho, chi con cach di nhat rac kiem song. Roi con chau cung theo nghe luon chu ngheo kho qua biet lam sao“, ba Kien noi.

Ms. Son Kien (63 years old) has been attached to the landfill for more than half of her life. Currently, both her children and grandchildren have followed her career and chosen the landfill as a place to make a living. "This job is foul and dirty! It is so hard but only 100,000 - 150,000 VND per day. The family is so poor, no one is hired to do anything when they are old, so they come here to dig up trash to find broken rice bowls and clothes, but life is not getting better," Ms. Kien shared.

Ba Tra Thi Thai mot ho co hon 10 nam nhat rac tai day cho biet: Trung binh moi ngay 2 vo chong nhat vai tram kg boc, chai nhua cac loai. Khoang 10-15 ngay thuong lai se thu mua. Thu nhap khoang 2 trieu dong. So tien nay gia dinh chi tieu tiet kiem vi co 2 nguoi con dang di hoc.

Ms. Tra Thi Thai, who has been picking up trash for more than 10 years, said that at 5-6 am, she and her husband were at the landfill until 3 pm before returning, not including holidays. "On average, we pick up about a hundred kg of plastic bags and bottles of all kinds every day. About 10 - 15 days, traders will buy, earning about 2 million VND. This amount of money the family spends economically because they have 2 children going to school," said Ms. Thai.

Chi Ly mot nguoi nhat rac cho biet khi xe cho rac vao bai moi nguoi tap trung vao nhat, thong thuong la boc ni lon, chai nhua, giay,.. Tuy theo loai co gia tu vai tram dong den vai nghin dong moi kg. “Nghe nay cuc lam, mua nang thi nong con mua mua thi boc mui ghe gom, nuoc chay xuong rac kho nhat. Nhung khong nghe nghiep thi phai chap nhan lam nghe nay“, chi Ly noi.

Ms. Ly, a garbage collector, said that when garbage trucks enter the yard, people focus on picking up them, usually with nylon wrap, plastic bottles, paper... Depending on the type, the price ranges from a few hundred dong to a few thousand dong per kilogram. "This job is very hard, it is hot in the dry season and foul-smelling in the rainy season, the water flowing into the trash is difficult to pick up. But if it is not a profession, I have to accept this profession, said Ms. Ly.

Xe vua do rac xuong, nhieu nguoi da vay quanh, buoi moc tim kiem nhung gi co the ban duoc, su dung duoc.

The vehicles had just dumped garbage, many people surrounded them, searching for what could be sold and used.

Ba Thach Thi Sa Khum (53 tuoi) hang ngay di nhat rac de nuoi 2 dua chau ngoai. “Con toi ly hon roi de 2 dua chau cho toi nuoi. Vo chong toi gia dau co nghe gi nen vao day nhat rac. Dua chau gai moi 4 tuoi dau dam bo o nha nen mang vao bai rac de trong coi luon. Toi chi mong sao co suc khoe de nuoi chau di hoc sau nay dung lam nghe giong ong ba“, ba Khum ngap ngui noi.

Mrs. Thach Thi Sa Khum (53 years old) collects trash every day to raise her 2 grandchildren. "My child is divorced and I have to raise 2 grandchildren. My wife and I are old and do not have any jobs, so we come here to pick up trash. The 4-year-old girl did not dare to leave it at home, so she took it to the landfill to look after it. I just hope to have the health to send my child to school, and not work like your grandparents in the future," Ms. Khum said sadly.

Cong viec boi rac tiem an nhieu nguy co benh tat do mui hoi thoi, tay chan de bi thuong boi kim loai, manh vo thuy tinh, tham chi kim tiem da qua su dung.

The work of digging up trash has many potential risks of disease due to stench, vulnerable limbs due to metal, broken glass, and even used syringes.

“Tay chan hau nhu moi ngay deu dut het. Nhe thi minh lay vai bang lai roi nhat tiep, nang qua dau nhuc thi mua thuoc uong. Lam riet quen roi“, ong Son Danh nguoi co tren 10 nam nhat rac cho biet.

"My toes are broken almost every day. When it was too weak, I took the fabric and picked it up again, it was too painful so I bought medicine to drink. It's a habit to work hard," said a woman who has been picking up trash for over 10 years.

Thay duoc hoan canh kho khan, Lanh dao Xi nghiep lien hiep chat thai rac Soc Trang thuong xuyen ho tro qua, banh cho cac ho nhat rac tai day. Ngoai ra con tuyen truyen nguoi dan trang bi bao ho, dam bao an toan va giu khoang cach khi cac xe cho rac vao bai.

Understanding the difficult circumstances of garbage collectors, the leaders of Soc Trang solid waste Association Enterprise regularly support gifts and cakes. In addition, it also propagates and mobilizes people to equip themselves with labor protectors, ensure safety and keep a safe distance when garbage trucks enter the landfill.