Examining: why dumps are as worrisome as a pandemic

A mountain of more than 20 meters formed only of garbage. A very strong bad smell, bugs like flies and rats everywhere. This is the setting for an open-air dump. The waste disposal method is prohibited in Brazil by several laws, but the reality shows that the problem is far from solved.
Congressional approval of the so-called new framework for sanitation can help but to end the problem of dumps, at least to accelerate the reduction of this model that harms the environment and society.
Examining shows what is the new sanitation milestone and how it can help solve the garbage problem in Brazil, which can cause as much damage as a pandemic.
A law passed ten years ago is the most important in trying to end open-air dumps in Brazil. At least so far. The National Solid Waste Policy set a deadline until 2014 for all clandestine open-air waste dumps to be closed. But as we well know, in practice, the norm did not bring results. The country still has nearly 3,000 places of illegal waste disposal.
A new law passed by the government in June this year promises to help reduce the problem. The measure is urgent. The country produced 79,000 tons of garbage in 2018. Of this total, 8% was not collected, that is, it was thrown through the streets, squares and rivers in the country. From the part that is collected, almost half are discharged in dumps or landfills that do not have the necessary measures to ensure the integrity of the environment and that of the local population. But why is it so important to find a solution. It turns out that the disposal of waste in the dumps can be as dangerous to people as a pandemic. The practice can generate many serious and contagious diseases, in addition to promoting the spread of rats, cockroaches and flies in the houses and shops around. And even though the regional problem is very large, there is nothing to prevent it from spreading and reaching large cities.
Not to mention water contamination. The garbage accumulated in the open produces a liquid called slurry, which is toxic and contaminated by all that mixture of waste that contains bacteria, fungi and viruses. As the material is exposed to the earth, this liquid penetrates the soil and reaches the groundwater, which are like underground rivers, and is where the water we use in the day to day comes from. And as if all this wasn't enough, the dumps also pollute the air with the release of methane gas that arises from the chemical reactions of the waste under the sun and rain.
In general, the approval of the new regulatory framework for basic sanitation defined new rules for the universalization of water, sewage services, and also for the eradication of dumps. New deadlines have been set for municipalities to take smart and sustainable means of discarding waste. Under the new rules, all municipalities must submit by the last day of 2020 a plan to end the dumps once and for all and how they intend to finance it. Each city can choose to create a fee. And the problem should be solved by 2024. That is, in 4 years there should be no more than a single dump in the country. Will it work?
That the disposal in the open is forbidden we already know, but then what is the right to do with garbage? Selective collection, which separates recyclable materials, and the transformation of food scraps into organic fertilizer are some of the options. The difference between a dump and a landfill is that in the landfill, before throwing the garbage, the soil is treated with substances that prevent the passage of slurry to the land and to the groundwater. It also has a system of channeling the gases formed in the garbage and they are not released directly into the atmosphere.
But the new framework of basic sanitation not only changes the rules on dumps, it also deals with the universalization of piped water and sewage. Only half of Brazilians have this service. And the new law provides that everyone has access by 2033. In addition, the regulatory framework also makes room for private companies to offer sanitation services to the population. Today, contracts are established directly, and without competition. Garbage and lack of sanitation are major problems that bring a lot of damage to Brazil. The new rules to change reality have been approved, now it remains to know how they will be applied and what the changes will be.