{"id":80848,"date":"2025-05-09T11:16:14","date_gmt":"2025-05-09T14:16:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/?p=80848"},"modified":"2025-05-15T22:12:41","modified_gmt":"2025-05-16T01:12:41","slug":"trash-not-to-us-environmental-action-in-rio-public-housing-complex-denounces-municipal-neglect-and-proposes-waste-collection-as-a-source-of-income","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/?p=80848","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Trash? Not to Us!\u2019 Environmental Action in Rio Public Housing Complex Denounces Municipal Neglect and Proposes Waste Collection as a Source of Income"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Several<\/a>
Several sites of accumulated waste appear throughout the housing complexes of Barros Filho. Photo: Amanda Baroni Lopes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Clique aqui para Portugu\u00eas<\/strong><\/i><\/em><\/i><\/em><\/a><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/a>This article is part of a\u00a0series<\/a>\u00a0created in partnership with the\u00a0Behner Stiefel Center for Brazilian Studies<\/a>\u00a0at San Diego State University, to produce articles for the\u00a0Digital Brazil Project<\/a>\u00a0on environmental justice in the favelas for\u00a0RioOnWatch.<\/em><\/p>\n

This year, International Workers\u2019 Day took on a different meaning at the Haroldo de Andrade public housing complex, in the Rio de Janeiro North Zone<\/a> neighborhood of Barros Filho. Bringing together around 30 people\u2014men and women, adults and children, residents and participants from environmental movements and organizations\u2014the \u201cTrash? Not to Us!\u201d collective action gathered fifteen 200-liter bags of solid waste and six bags of recyclable materials throughout the complex. In addition, the group planted 29 fruit saplings, two Brazilwood seedlings (the endemic tree after which Brazil is named), and two coriander beds in the community\u2019s green space, where composted organic waste is reused for gardening.<\/p>\n

According to N\u00e9lio Lopes<\/a>, who leads the Haroldo de Andrade Sustainable Socio-Educational Project (PSSHA), the initiative seeks to secure waste collection services for the housing complex, which has long suffered from neglect by the Rio de Janeiro city government.<\/p>\n

\u201cDue to this government neglect<\/a> and lack of leadership, we are now facing a major problem: garbage. And I don\u2019t blame the residents for the issue [or for waste not being properly discarded], because we don\u2019t have garbage bins provided by City Hall.\u201d \u2014 N\u00e9lio Lopes<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The day before the collective action, the community submitted yet another request to City Hall for waste collection. According to residents, the municipal government stated that large-capacity garbage bins<\/a> will be provided by the Subprefecture for Large Complexes<\/a>, an administrative branch of the City focused on urban development and public services in large-scale public housing complexes. For now, the City says the only option is to place these dumpsters along highways. The City claims it intends to install them<\/a> in housing complexes and favelas.<\/p>\n

\"Created<\/a>
Created by N\u00e9lio Lopes, the Haroldo de Andrade Sustainable Socio-Educational Project calls out the city government\u2019s neglect of waste collection in Barros Filho. Photo: Amanda Baroni Lopes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Barros Filho and Its Fight for Basic Rights<\/h3>\n

The lack of waste\u00a0 collection in the Haroldo de Andrade Housing Complex is not an isolated problem\u2014it is intertwined with the community\u2019s lack of recognition by the government since its inception.<\/p>\n

Opened in 2012, the complex was designed as part of the My House My Life<\/a> federal housing program. However, to this day, the streets of the Haroldo de Andrade Housing Complex and surrounding areas still face registration issues and are officially classified as \u201cconstruction sites,\u201d despite the work having long been completed. This creates additional barriers to residents\u2019 access to Comlurb<\/a>‘s services\u2014the municipal waste collection utility.<\/p>\n

Rita de C\u00e1ssia, a cook and resident of Barros Filho, took part in the collective action. Like other participants, she shared the importance of taking care of one\u2019s own neighborhood. For her, this is an act of resistance.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m in this fight with N\u00e9lio because we\u2019ve got a lot of garbage here in the complex. [We\u2019re doing this action here today] to help take care of the community because, come on, we live in a place [that already faces so many challenges] and if we don\u2019t take care of it, then what? I mean, don\u2019t we clean our homes on the inside? [So,] why can\u2019t we clean the outside too? Who wants to welcome visitors to a place that\u2019s all dirty? Who likes that? No one. Otherwise, it\u2019s hard for us to keep the area clean, to have a place for the kids to play, you know? It gets really complicated.\u201d \u2014 Rita de C\u00e1ssia<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"Seedling<\/a>
Planting seedlings in the community garden at the Haroldo de Andrade Housing Complex. Photo: Amanda Baroni Lopes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Garbage in a Fragment of Atlantic Forest<\/h3>\n

The lack of garbage containers and appropriate pick-up also affect residents who live near a small, preserved strip of the Atlantic Forest<\/a> that runs through the community. Norma Bonfim, a biologist collaborator with the PSSHA project and a member of Ba\u00eda Viva<\/a> (Living Bay), a conservation group focused on the Guanabara Bay, explains that maintaining the area is important for the local climate\u2014not only for residents, but for the surrounding region.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve irrevocably lost several portions of the Atlantic Forest\u2014cleared for real estate speculation or public works projects. And here, a bit of that wildlife still remains. So even though this is a very hot area, without this strip it would be much worse. This patch helps regulate the region\u2019s microclimate. We can\u2019t afford to lose it, because it would mean more pollution, rising temperatures, and the loss of native species, right? This work here is really important.\u201d \u2014 Norma Bonfim<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"Preserved<\/a>
Preserved strip of Atlantic Forest in Barros Filho. Photo: Amanda Baroni Lopes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For Waste Pickers, Garbage Means Work: A Vital Job for Society<\/h3>\n

For Lopes, despite major environmental challenges, there are also opportunities for some residents\u2014in particular those who work as waste pickers, who are generally people in situations of social vulnerability, with low income and limited access to education.<\/p>\n

\u201c[The city government] sees trash as trash, but I don\u2019t think it\u2019s just to be disposed of. Trash is [also]… a solution. Today, on Workers’ Day, we need to recognize the waste pickers, right? They\u2019re environmental agents. Often, this is the only job they\u2019ve got because they don\u2019t have much schooling, they don\u2019t know how to use the Internet, and sometimes they don\u2019t have [access to formal] education. The only thing they know how to do is recycle. So, I think we could invest more in this: recycling centers inside favelas. My intention here is for us to [start] collecting this waste, taking it to a central space, sorting it by type of material, and for the government to help us with a [paid] stipend\u2014like the ones they have for Hortas Cariocas<\/a> [municipal community gardens program] and Guardi\u00f5es do Rio [an initiative to clean and conserve Rio\u2019s rivers and waterways]\u2014and for these people to be able to share in the surplus, you know? The sale of this material can supplement their salary. For example: the project pays R$600 (~$100 USD monthly) to these people, and, at the end, they get a percentage from the sales they make. That way, we raise awareness and solve this garbage issue in the community.\u201d \u2014 N\u00e9lio Lopes<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"Planting<\/a>
Planting a mango tree in front of the Haroldo de Andrade Sustainable Socio-Educational Project. Photo: Amanda Baroni Lopes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Stael Muniz, a resident of the West Zone\u2019s Vargem Grande<\/a> neighborhood and, like Lopes, C\u00e1ssia and Bonfim, a member of Rio’s multi-community Sustainable Favela Network (SFN<\/a>), highlighted the importance of expanding professional perspectives on waste management<\/a>. For example, it is necessary to create environmental work centers within favelas.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were talking amongst ourselves, saying how great it would be if, just like there are community health agents, there were socio-environmental community agents who could go door to door to people’s homes. You don\u2019t need to tell people where to throw their trash\u2014they know where to do that. The problem is that people separate their trash but we don\u2019t have where to recycle it. So, if we had a group going around collecting all this packaging, which is practically all recyclable, and taking it to Comlurb, [it would] avoid mixing regular waste with recyclables. For those of us who work with this, it would be very cool and practical. But then there\u2019s all that stigma, right? Like, \u2018What, me go pick up trash with Comlurb?\u2019 I think there needs to be a partnership between those who collect and those who recycle, because we can make use of [this material] and reduce the amount of waste in the city.\u201d \u2014 Stael Muniz<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

For Lopes, promoting this environmental campaign in Barros Filhos is an act of hope: something that brings residents closer together and awakens them to the power they have to change their own community.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s extremely important [to take on this collective action]. I believe there’s still hope in people. Someone has to awaken that in them. I do this [as] a volunteer, to help [the community], to raise awareness. To leave a legacy, because we don’t take anything from [this life] when we go. I have to pass [through life] and do something. Many people see it as madness. I see it as a calling.\u201d \u2014 N\u00e9lio Lopes<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"Participants<\/a>
Participants in the environmental collective action pick up waste in Barros Filho. Photo: Amanda Baroni Lopes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Representatives of the following movements, associations, and organizations were present at the event: Ba\u00eda Viva<\/a>, Sustainable Noble Cause<\/a>, Ilha do Governador Women\u2019s Association<\/a>, Ibama RJ Environmental Education<\/a>, Regional Biology Council<\/a>, Association of Residents and Defenders of Jardim de Allah<\/a>, Maria Pimentel Marinho Women\u2019s Movement<\/a>, National Movement of Positive Women Citizens<\/a> (RJ), and Women of the West Zone of Rio de Janeiro.<\/p>\n

About the author:\u00a0Amanda Baroni Lopes<\/a>\u00a0is a journalism student at Unicarioca and was part of the first Journalism Laboratory organized by Mar\u00e9\u2019s community newspaper\u00a0Mar\u00e9 de Not\u00edcias<\/a>. She is the author of the\u00a0Anti-Harassment Guide on Breaking<\/a>, a handbook that explains what is and isn\u2019t harassment to the Hip Hop audience and provides guidance on what to do in these situations. Lopes is from\u00a0Morro do Timbau<\/a>\u00a0and currently lives in\u00a0Vila do Jo\u00e3o<\/a>, both favelas within the larger Mar\u00e9 favela complex.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Support\u00a0<\/b>RioOnWatch<\/i><\/b>\u2019s tireless, critical and cutting-edge hyperlocal journalism, online community organizing meetings, and direct support to favelas\u00a0<\/b>by clicking here.<\/a><\/b><\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Clique aqui para Portugu\u00eas This article is part of a\u00a0series\u00a0created in partnership with the\u00a0Behner Stiefel Center for Brazilian Studies\u00a0at San Diego State University, to produce articles for the\u00a0Digital Brazil Project\u00a0on environmental justice in the favelas […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":245,"featured_media":80849,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"template-full.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1328,1290,1333,329,452],"tags":[219,484,474,386,182,288,157,37,1025,388,3011,2840,471,3186,692,904,1140],"writer":[3501],"translator":[3485],"illustrator":[],"photographer":[3706],"class_list":{"0":"post-80848","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-by-community-contributors","8":"category-civilsociety","9":"category-event-reports","10":"category-solutions","11":"category-rio20","12":"tag-collective-action","13":"tag-comlurb-waste-collection","14":"tag-environment","15":"tag-trash","16":"tag-government-neglect","17":"tag-mata-atlantica","18":"tag-minha-casa-minha-vida","19":"tag-north-zone","20":"tag-poor-quality-services","21":"tag-recycling","22":"tag-series-human-rights-with-support-from-the-behner-stiefel-center-at-sdsu","23":"tag-series-sfn-exchanges","24":"tag-sustainability","25":"tag-sfn","26":"tag-trash-collection","27":"tag-utilities","28":"tag-waste-management","29":"writer-amanda-baroni-lopes","30":"translator-ujwala-murthy","31":"photographer-amanda-baroni-lopes"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80848","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/245"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=80848"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80848\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":80869,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80848\/revisions\/80869"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/80849"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=80848"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=80848"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=80848"},{"taxonomy":"writer","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fwriter&post=80848"},{"taxonomy":"translator","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftranslator&post=80848"},{"taxonomy":"illustrator","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fillustrator&post=80848"},{"taxonomy":"photographer","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fphotographer&post=80848"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}