Where does all the garbage go?

The cities in India are congested and full of people and all the things that they need to sustain human life. Everywhere we have traveled we see litter lining the streets. So what happens at the end of the day with all the garbage? We took a ride to the outside of Kolkata to the Dhapa Dumping Ground to find out how this city is handling their trash in a unique way.

Long before the trucks arrive at the dump, garbage is collected in various ways. Private homes may arrange for pick-up at their house. Small rickshaws take the trash down narrow streets to a common dumping ground. Since many people live in slums there is no regular pick-up of trash for them. City garbage goes to a common collection area. Here, people meticulously go through the refuge looking for reusable items, recyclables and for some, they search for their next meal. This is how the poorest of the poor exist.

Once the garbage has been picked through and sorted it is loaded onto open trucks. A continuous stream of trucks brings the refuge from this enormous city to a privately owned expanse of earth at the edge of town. A mountain of refuge is picked over by workers who further sort the garbage. Eventually what is left will be made into compost.

The compost fields have become farmland for the poor. They live on the land and grow crops here. It has become a way to recycle the old, and feed the ever-increasing population of Kolkata. It is a win-win situation for the people of this city but how much longer this will last is a question often asked. As the city expands the real estate values have increased. The land, which once was filled with garbage, will most likely become a modern neighbor for expanding enterprises and housing for the rich.

Kolkata is unique in this recycling project. In most cities the garbage is simple dumped in a landfill and is turned over to begin the long process of returning to the earth. Most Indians have little concern for recycling. When you struggle to get a full meal and clean water every day, recycling is not a high priority.

The pictures show how the mountain of trash (bottom picture) turns into organic compost that is farmed on by people in the area.