Libya & Trash Everywhere

Lately we noticed people working next to airport road. They seemed to be collecting trash along the road. They pick up vast amounts of trash along the road and pack them in blue plastic bags. Shocking, no?
Shocking because even the most newbie expat (and non-expat) to Libya notices culture of trash here.

Only recently and only in some areas of Tripoli there is organized trash collection. Well, organized to an extent. The trucks used for collection are more often than not run down DAFs from the 60s. The sides of truck-bed are made higher with cardboard boxes or old spring mattresses. The crew stands on the trash pile in the back (!) and poor guys have to use their hands to sort through the trash so it wouldn't fall of the truck. One guy is on the street level and he is in charge of getting the trash bag and flinging it to other guy on top of the trash pile. Sometimes people do not use plastic trash bags but just pour their trash in the can. Then, the whole can has to be flung to the top to be emptied. It is horrible job and no one should be working in those conditions. But hey, they are not Libyans so thats ok!

Now, when we go on trips out in the country, very often we see huge piles of trash strewn across the nature. It sure makes it difficult to snap trash free pic. It looks like some of those "organized" trash collection companies are taking shortcuts to deposit. If there is an official trash depot in Tripoli, which I doubt. Maybe there is even a high-tech trash burning facility hidden somewhere?

Now, this organized trashing of the Libyan nature aside, there is also unorganized and much more personal trashing going on. Every day, anywhere you go there is a huge chance that you will see a Libyan casually flinging coffee cup, plastic bag, cigarette, cigarette box and what not out of his/her car window. Once I counted 23 trash objects flung out from 21 different car windows while driving or waiting on the traffic light. 2 of them threw out several things in a succession. Spring cleaning perhaps? And you know what, none of these people looked even slightly embarrassed.
It is considered normal here. They just do not understand the concept of a trash bin. Maybe they do not understand it because there barely are trash cans put up by the community. Maybe because they just do not get that what they throw out of their window will end up in their plate in the end.

I can not comprehend how can people be so uneducated about the effect of the trash. Hell, I take it back, this is not only education, this is pure common sense. If you do not want to have it in your bloody car, why do you want to have it next to the road?? Why can you not wait until you can put it in a trash bin?? This approach as it is not-their-problem once it is out of the window is mind boggling for me.

I have seen cats with plastic bags hanging out of their buts. They eat the trash which is flung all around the nature in Libya. I have seen dogs with plastic bags hanging out of their buts too. Shocked with vulgarity? Do not be, you probably help it happen. How many plastic bags you have in your car after you finished shopping in Tripoli? 20? 30? You think I am exaggerating?
Here, individual bottle of shampoo is packed into separate plastic bag so it would not, god forbid, touch yogurt bottle. The fact that fridge in which said yogurt bottle sits in, is not working half of the time is not a problem. But hey, we would not want it to be touching with something so dangerous as a closed shampoo!! I had tugging wars at the beginning where I would pack everything in the same bag and packing helper would take it all out (!) and spread it through 10 different plastic bags. I tried bringing canvas bag into shops, but I admit I gave up after too many strange situations.

Here, we have a big garden and by default, every time wind spell ends I go around and collect flown in trash. I climb the trees, I crawl into bushes, I fish it out of the pool. Plastic bags, cookie packages, crisps bags, ice-cream cartons, coffee cups, chocolate wrappers etc. My trees looked this winter like haunted Christmas trees with all the plastic stuff hanging and dancing on their branches. Now, the leaves came out and I can pretend I do not see it anymore.

When they do not fling it out, they sure burn it. My northern neighbours are experts in it. Every week several times they pile up their trash and light it up. Of course the smell aside, trash burned on low temperatures tends to emit toxic chemicals which then end up in my lungs. And sadly, since children absorb 6 times more pollution through their lungs than adults, it also ends up in their childrens lungs. The health impact is staggering, but no one here cares. Some of the most dangerous things to burn are PVC products, coloured papers, and food wrappers. Hm, could it be....

When we first came here, we looked for a nice private beach where I can sunbathe. We eventually found one west of Sabratha. It was cool place and I enjoyed being there. But. To get there we had to drive through salt planes which were covered with so much trash of such amazing variety that for first several times we went there I had to snap tons of pics. Just so people back home would believe me.
Now, situation has not changed for the better and we stopped going there.

It is devastating situation, and one that will have influence on every human being and every animal that will live in these areas for hundreds of years. But hey, all is good right? As long as Libyans get nice new cars and some extra petty cash from oil. That is how it is now.

I believe you can see development of a country by how it treats its trash. And immigrants, but that's another post. In Libya it is crystal clear how developed it is. Current priority of citizens is to have flashy new cars and mobile phones and spend as much money as they can on trivia. Its all about money here and how you show it to your neighbors. And its fine. It is human nature. And understanding what happens with trash when we are done with it does not mean you can't have that flashy car..

As for Libyan government? They will eventually realize the escalating problem with trash they have on their hands and start to deal with it. Now the priority is to put enormous amount of oil money into urban development of Tripoli in the vain hope Tripoli will one day resemble Dubai . So it is understanding that there is nothing left to build one decent trash plant? Recycling yard? One pathetic plot of land? No?

Something nice

*Courtesy of YouTube.

Libya & Spring

P.S. Maybe some of you noticed that some pictures from this post are missing now. Well, that would be because blogger is acting out again. Will fix it another day..