There is too much trash. The
7 billion humans on this planet, all trying to live as comfortably and
respectfully as local and global cultures dictate we should, consume a
tremendous amount. In turn, there is waste. So much waste that the climate is
changing, ice caps are melting, and polar bears are dying, among all the other
environmental concerns that most of us have grown numb to. This is a global problem
originating from the western world’s industrial revolution. Yet, westerners
tend to be very critical of poor communities’ waste culture.
Often, the first thing a westerner notices upon arriving in a "developing" country is trash. Unlike America, Morocco isn't good at concealing its waste. In my town, streets accumulate garbage, sometimes consolidated into an alley or an overwhelmed dumpster. This pile will either be further consolidated into a dump outside town, or burned. The result of such a system appears messy from a western perspective. There are wrappers, bottles, and cigarette butts scattered throughout the community. Fire and smoke erupt every now and then as a neighborhood tries to reduce its trash pile. Local culture appears to lack respect for environmental cleanliness. However, it is important to first consider America’s own consumption and waste management before judging others.
Despite advances in recycling and conserving energy, America must afford a brunt of responsibility for the global environmental crisis. Criticizing other cultures’ respect for the environment is more than a little hypocritical. It is America, among other countries that led the industrial revolution, that demonstrated how cheap coal could be, showed the power of re-networking hydrology, and romanticized the freedom of driving an automobile. As much as American’s feel proud of bagging groceries in there own shopping bags, or fining those who litter, they forget how excessive and wasteful other habits can be. Do we really need a machine to dry our clothes? Do we really need to import tropical fruits? Is there a way to run errands without a vehicle?
Someone once told me that after America, Morocco uses the most plastic per capita out of all countries in the world. I have no idea how to verify this fact, and it's probably not true, but I would believe it if the internet proved it to me. Plastic bags are used to carry away the smallest of purchases in Moroccan communities. Store owners proudly bag groceries as excessively as possible. It’s a bad cultural habit in terms of environmental health and city beautification. Plastic bags scatter across fields, waving like tiny flags. They float down the local creek, jamming up when the flow tightens. I spot plastic bags in the sky, gripped by the wind. On the other side of the Atlantic, plastic waste is hidden. It is whisked away from households, using efficient and modern consolidation systems (that a developed economy can afford). American’s can sit on their porches, overlooking pristine neighborhoods, without bits of trash reminding them how their consumption is environmentally destructive. It’s like the garbage has disappeared.
Since an American neighborhood is so sanitary, but America consumes and wastes an awful lot, I believe a visitor's disgust to Morocco's trash problem is mostly aesthetics. The complaint will be that the garbage everywhere is a hazard to the environment and the health of locals, but deep down all that is being said is “ew, why does everyone litter?” Many foreigners fail to admit the economic advantages that most Western waste disposal systems have, and they also fail to acknowledge their own bad habits that disrespect the environment. Just like a Moroccan tossing his candy wrapper on the street, the American that drives his car everywhere is stuck repeating a certain behavior on account of culture and economics. Behavior is hard to change.
Peace Corps Volunteers have attempted to tackle the trash problem within their communities. The idea is usually a trash pick up day with locals. Volunteers walk around picking up trash making the community look cleaner. ‘Look’ being the key word here. Once it’s been picked up where does it go? I guess you could burn it. Or move it to a big trash pile. Maybe you could try to recycle it, but who really knows how to do that. But, even if a trash pick up is doing nothing more than moving trash around, making a community look cleaner is certainly worth it. A trash pick up encourages a spirit of volunteerism, instills local pride for the community, and demonstrates respect for neighbors that share public space with you. If humans really expect to tackle our titanic environmental problems, we should probably start with these values first.
There is no way to actually make trash disappear. As much as we try to recycle and hide our garbage, it will keep growing. Companies package products and humans buy them, and the packaging and leftovers have to go somewhere. Its hard to ignore the fact that we are putting some pretty serious stress on our planet. Most of us may be numb to the warnings, but we can’t deny them. Out of self-respect, we should continue to curb our wasteful behaviors, no matter how futile the fight to save the environment may seem.
Often, the first thing a westerner notices upon arriving in a "developing" country is trash. Unlike America, Morocco isn't good at concealing its waste. In my town, streets accumulate garbage, sometimes consolidated into an alley or an overwhelmed dumpster. This pile will either be further consolidated into a dump outside town, or burned. The result of such a system appears messy from a western perspective. There are wrappers, bottles, and cigarette butts scattered throughout the community. Fire and smoke erupt every now and then as a neighborhood tries to reduce its trash pile. Local culture appears to lack respect for environmental cleanliness. However, it is important to first consider America’s own consumption and waste management before judging others.
Despite advances in recycling and conserving energy, America must afford a brunt of responsibility for the global environmental crisis. Criticizing other cultures’ respect for the environment is more than a little hypocritical. It is America, among other countries that led the industrial revolution, that demonstrated how cheap coal could be, showed the power of re-networking hydrology, and romanticized the freedom of driving an automobile. As much as American’s feel proud of bagging groceries in there own shopping bags, or fining those who litter, they forget how excessive and wasteful other habits can be. Do we really need a machine to dry our clothes? Do we really need to import tropical fruits? Is there a way to run errands without a vehicle?
Someone once told me that after America, Morocco uses the most plastic per capita out of all countries in the world. I have no idea how to verify this fact, and it's probably not true, but I would believe it if the internet proved it to me. Plastic bags are used to carry away the smallest of purchases in Moroccan communities. Store owners proudly bag groceries as excessively as possible. It’s a bad cultural habit in terms of environmental health and city beautification. Plastic bags scatter across fields, waving like tiny flags. They float down the local creek, jamming up when the flow tightens. I spot plastic bags in the sky, gripped by the wind. On the other side of the Atlantic, plastic waste is hidden. It is whisked away from households, using efficient and modern consolidation systems (that a developed economy can afford). American’s can sit on their porches, overlooking pristine neighborhoods, without bits of trash reminding them how their consumption is environmentally destructive. It’s like the garbage has disappeared.
Since an American neighborhood is so sanitary, but America consumes and wastes an awful lot, I believe a visitor's disgust to Morocco's trash problem is mostly aesthetics. The complaint will be that the garbage everywhere is a hazard to the environment and the health of locals, but deep down all that is being said is “ew, why does everyone litter?” Many foreigners fail to admit the economic advantages that most Western waste disposal systems have, and they also fail to acknowledge their own bad habits that disrespect the environment. Just like a Moroccan tossing his candy wrapper on the street, the American that drives his car everywhere is stuck repeating a certain behavior on account of culture and economics. Behavior is hard to change.
Peace Corps Volunteers have attempted to tackle the trash problem within their communities. The idea is usually a trash pick up day with locals. Volunteers walk around picking up trash making the community look cleaner. ‘Look’ being the key word here. Once it’s been picked up where does it go? I guess you could burn it. Or move it to a big trash pile. Maybe you could try to recycle it, but who really knows how to do that. But, even if a trash pick up is doing nothing more than moving trash around, making a community look cleaner is certainly worth it. A trash pick up encourages a spirit of volunteerism, instills local pride for the community, and demonstrates respect for neighbors that share public space with you. If humans really expect to tackle our titanic environmental problems, we should probably start with these values first.
There is no way to actually make trash disappear. As much as we try to recycle and hide our garbage, it will keep growing. Companies package products and humans buy them, and the packaging and leftovers have to go somewhere. Its hard to ignore the fact that we are putting some pretty serious stress on our planet. Most of us may be numb to the warnings, but we can’t deny them. Out of self-respect, we should continue to curb our wasteful behaviors, no matter how futile the fight to save the environment may seem.
