One Man's Treasure

While serving as a Catholic Relief Services volunteer in Candelaria, Honduras, I was confronted with the smell of smoldering garbage at a local dump site. Against the backdrop of rolling hills and breathtaking forests, the garbage sat in piles within this community, which lacked an environmentally friendly waste management system. The garbage was either burnt or washed into the town's river by rains. Children looking for items to sell would sift through the piles without any protection, and their efforts generally meant that they were not attending school.

With the help of CRS, the Honduran government, and a local water and sanitation partner, we started a waste management system that began in the homes of the town's 212 families. Working with residents and high school students, we addressed the problem as an opportunity to transform waste into chances for employment, income and a beautified society. Residents receive a small payment for their aluminum cans and plastics, while the government pays for two workers to organize waste materials at the dump site. Funding from CRS helped provide families with recycling bins and dual-basket waste receptacles, as well as protective fencing for the dump site.

Environmental sustainability is one of the eight Millennium Development Goals to be met by 2015 as set by the United Nations. These photos demonstrate the small yet steady progress that is being made toward this goal.

Photos by Michael Klatt/CRS

Michael Klatt is a CRS volunteer. Now stationed at the Diocese of Chicago, he has written a series of blog entries about his volunteer work in Honduras.