Guatemala's Hidden Crisis: Communities Battle a Common Household Threat
Guatemala faces a severe plastic pollution crisis, with widespread open burning of plastic waste leading to dire health consequences. In rural areas lacking formal waste collection, communities often resort to burning plastic, unknowingly releasing harmful toxins into the air. This practice poses significant health risks, especially to women and children, contributing to respiratory issues and developmental problems. The "Ecolectivos" project, a collaboration of international and local researchers, empowers these communities by providing education and strategies to reduce plastic use and burning, highlighting the urgent need for sustainable waste management and cleaner solutions.
In El Duraznal, a small mountain village in Guatemala, Soila Elizabeth Cruz regularly organizes community cleanups to tackle the overwhelming plastic waste. Known as Betty, she learned about the dangers of plastic burning and the benefits of reduction through Ecolectivos, a project that empowers local Xinca Indigenous communities.
Guatemala is battling a global plastic crisis driven by massive, unsustainable production of petroleum-based materials. Manufacturers have produced hundreds of millions of tons annually for decades, promoting disposable items while only 9 percent of all plastic has ever been recycled. Guatemala has limited waste management infrastructure yet imports vast amounts of plastic products, with imports of household plastic items alone exceeding 1.2 million tons over the last decade, and Chinese products tripling since 2016. This influx has turned the country into a major hotspot for plastic pollution in Latin America, with rivers like the Motagua becoming some of the most contaminated globally.
Over half of Guatemala’s population lives in poverty, and most rural areas lack garbage collection. This forces nearly three-quarters of rural households to burn their waste, including plastic. This practice releases a harmful mixture of microplastics, carcinogens, and other toxic chemicals that damage the brain, nervous system, and reproductive health. Emissions from plastic burning could cause "notable increases" in air pollution, impacting both human health and the environment, according to a 2023 study co-led by Ecolectivos researcher Eri Saikawa.
Before Ecolectivos, Betty Cruz often burned plastic near her home, suffering headaches and respiratory irritation. Now, inspired by the project, she's swapped plastic bags for reusable ones and encourages her neighbors to join cleanups. “We gain our health,” she says, highlighting the direct benefits of environmental action for her community.
The Ecolectivos project, a collaboration between researchers from the University del Valle de Guatemala, Emory University, and the University of California, San Francisco, aims to understand and reduce the health impacts of plastic burning. Researchers like Lisa Thompson have long studied how indoor air pollution affects health, noting that women and children are particularly vulnerable because they spend more time in kitchens where open fires or wood stoves are common. In rural Guatemala, 95 percent of households cook with firewood, and adding plastic to these fires dramatically worsens air quality.
The project uses small air monitors worn by hundreds of women to track their exposure to harmful particles. Researchers also collect urine samples and survey cooking habits to gauge the impact of their interventions. Oscar de León, a senior researcher with Ecolectivos, observes that plastic waste is inescapable, littering streets and mountain paths, a constant reminder of the urgent need for change.
Many residents, like Delmy and Sandra Mungiya Marcos, understand the health risks of burning plastic but feel they have no other options. Delmy’s family burns plastic weekly because there’s no garbage collection. Sandra, a mother of three, finds gas too expensive for cooking and sometimes uses plastic to start her wood fire, despite the smoke making her children’s colds worse. Field workers lament that while people want to choose cleaner alternatives, the cost is often prohibitive.
Community leader Wendy Hernández initially saw up to 200 people participate in cleanups after learning about recycling and creative reuse. However, participation dwindled when there were no viable ways to dispose of the collected waste. Katerine Ramírez echoes this frustration, stating that without trash collection, people are forced to manage their own waste, often resorting to burning.
These challenges underscore why the Ecolectivos workshops focused on community-led strategies like cleanups and sorting recyclables. Despite market fluctuations that sometimes make recycling unprofitable, like when PET plastic prices dropped, local residents like Juliana Pérez Aguilar continue their efforts to educate and keep the environment clean. What's truly needed, she and her daughter Clara say, is a local collection center, reducing transport costs and making recycling more accessible and economically viable.
Looking ahead, the Ecolectivos team is embarking on a new experiment: testing electric induction stoves for cooking. This could eliminate combustion entirely, significantly reducing emissions and improving health. However, with irregular access to electricity in rural areas and traditional cooking methods, the viability of such advanced electrification solutions remains to be seen. The ongoing sight of fresh plastic bonfires after community cleanups highlights that while awareness and small changes are powerful, systemic solutions for waste management and cleaner energy are critical for lasting environmental and health improvements.