Recycling of municipal solid waste in the Gaza Strip

摘要

Recycling of certain items from waste represents an important strategy for poor populations throughout the developing countries. It has been estimated that up to 2% of the population in third world countries survives by recovery of materials from waste (Bartone, 1988). Among the waste management options in contention with landfill are incineration, composting and recycling. Recycling is an alternative to disposing of waste in landfills, thereby reducing the pressure on space in landfills. Recycling may also reduce the amount of land, air, and water pollution as well as reduce pressure on natural resources. Recycling is also a means of job creation and generation of income, especially among low-income groups (Muller, 2002). Recycling of selected materials can be a valuable component of an integrated waste management system. Also reuse and recycling provide an opportunity to capture some value from waste (Conitreau, etal, 1984; Beed and Bloom, 1995). The Gaza Strip suffers from a lack of convenient sites for sanitary landfills, and so any means of reducing waste quantities is to be welcomed (El-Hawi, 1997). This paper argues that recycling should be a more wide spread practice especially in the Gaza Strip where the Palestinians are facing financial and economic constraints. Some of the questions on recycling were raised with municipal officials, decision makers, street sweepers, United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), and Non Governmental Organization (NGO's). Responses and interpretations have shown great sympathy with the recycling option as a strategic disposal option alternative to landfilling.