Estimating the possible range of recycling rates achieved by dump waste pickers: The case of Bantar Gebang in Indonesia.

Sasaki, S. and Araki, T. 2014. Estimating the possible range of recycling rates achieved by dump waste pickers: The case of Bantar Gebang in Indonesia. ⇒SAGE Journals ⇒ResearchGate Waste Management & Research 32: 474-481. Abstract This article presents informal recycling contributions made by scavengers in the surrounding area of Bantar Gebang final disposal site for municipal solid waste generated in Jakarta. Preliminary fieldwork was conducted through daily conversations with scavengers to identify recycling actors at the site, and then quantitative field surveys were conducted twice. The first survey (n = 504 households) covered 33% of all households in the area, and the second survey (n = 69 households) was conducted to quantify transactions of recyclables among scavengers. Mathematical equations were formulated with assumptions made to estimate the possible range of recycling rates achieved by dump waste pickers. Slightly over 60% of all respondents were involved in informal recycling and over 80% of heads of households were waste pickers, normally referred to as live-in waste pickers and live-out waste pickers at the site. The largest percentage of their spouses were family workers, followed by waste pickers and housewives. Over 95% of …

Read more