It was once one of the cleanest provinces in Cuba. Its people were proud of the gleaming avenues and their strict adherence to hygiene. Then, nylon bags began to accumulate, along with cardboard from the previous week's chicken packaging, rubble, banana peels, weeds…

At the same time, hundreds of micro-dumps began to emerge, adding to the already foul-smelling landscape. People started dumping wherever they saw piles of trash: on the corner of the school, in the garden of the building, and even in the streets. Today, large mountains of garbage are removed, only to grow back again shortly after. Fire helps to control the size of many of them. Alongside it, vectors proliferate, along with stench and neglect…
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With the increase in arboviruses and the trail of illnesses brought on by chikungunya, the concern of Las Tunas residents has shifted to the need for safe, solid waste disposal. The alarms have been sounding repeatedly, but the situation now requires a concerted effort to resolve what could become a significant public health issue.

Dr. Yumara Acosta García, head of the Provincial Center for Hygiene, Epidemiology, and Microbiology, assures 26 that this issue is a priority in her work routine.

“We are, of course, convened to assess the health risks. We identify the potential dangers of disease generation in micro-dumps, such as the presence of vectors and contaminants for the soil or aquifers; in addition to the probability of fire, which is currently one of our biggest concerns,” the director stated.

“Regarding environmental control and basic sanitation, we have established guidelines with Municipal Services for solid waste disposal. We carry out the diagnosis and identification of micro-dumps in the areas with the highest entomo-epidemiological risk in the province, to focus our efforts on them,” she clarified.

“Every week, we conduct tours of the most problematic city blocks and know precisely how many illegal dumpsites there are in each health district, as well as those that are becoming more prominent. We prepare a report and circulate it every Sunday to the relevant agencies and authorities so they can make the necessary decisions and ensure the population is not endangered. We also systematically evaluate officially certified micro-dumpsites.

“Our institution's role is diagnosis, dispatch, and compliance monitoring. We set deadlines for the governing agency, which is Municipal Services, and we constantly check on those sites where we have made progress, those that are being added, and those that are recurring.”

The doctor clarifies that in this context, it is vital to continue promoting sanitation in communities, with neighborhood leaders' support and the entire population, because once the dumpsites are eliminated, we must prevent their reappearance.

“We must continue advocating for health education,” explains Acosta García. “This is everyone's problem, one that we must address together to achieve a safe environment.” This is about civic responsibility and ensuring that our inspection teams are present in the communities and emphasize the proper handling of waste.”

ON RESPONSIBILITIES AND COMMITMENTS

Piedad Herrera Núñez, director of Community Services in the Balcón de Oriente region, agrees that solid waste collection has been severely affected by the fuel shortage in recent times, a situation that has now become much more critical.

She explains that until recently, the city's cleaning was carried out using mechanized equipment, even when fuel was scarce. Now, new practices are necessary due to the suspension of this support.

“We are facing a great dilemma with the cart drivers,” Herrera Núñez explains. “Throughout the province, of the 657 needed, we only have 229; in the provincial capital, of the 230, only 84 are currently working, and just over 60 are in the city. Of course, this is insufficient.”

“Given the importance of their role, the members' salaries were increased to 15,000 pesos, but with current inflation levels, they claim that their income is consumed by payments to the National Tax Administration Office (ONAT in Spanish), the purchase of yerba mate, honey, and hardware; and the truth is, we haven't been able to increase our workforce.

“We've met with them from the sector, but we haven't reached an agreement on the raise we need. And if there's one thing we're very clear about, it's that regardless of the circumstances, we must carry out sanitation work and eliminate the illegal dumpsites.

“We're not standing idly by. We have projects planned with non-governmental organizations that can help us maintain hygiene; two are quite advanced, and we're open to exploring other options; the goal is to restore cleanliness that has always characterized Las Tunas.”

INDISCIPLINE WITHOUT CONSEQUENCES

With a frown, Piedad Herrera warns about other aspects that worsen the situation. “Our horse-drawn cart drivers dump the waste at the three certified landfills; they charge for the number of trips they make there. But others are hired by micro, small, and medium-sized businesses or residents who unload at the city's small dumps and collect their money as if nothing were wrong.

“Let no one think that we aren't working to eliminate garbage in this province. In recent weeks, we have had mechanized trucks working until late at night, leaving areas completely clean, and a few days later, everything is full again. There's a lack of control, a lack of civic responsibility, and I want to warn you, cart drivers who aren't part of the municipal services are dumping their loads there.

“With the rise of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs in Spanish), waste has increased, whether it's boxes, cans, plastic... That's where we need to focus our efforts.”

He asserts that the city residents, using fire, destroyed the dumpsters, where waste accumulated and was later collected by carts or wagons. “At the METUNAS Company, we recovered two of them, and their repair cost more than 400,000 pesos, due to the lack of public discipline.” “We had more than 60 [containers] to prevent the garbage from spreading, and they only left three,” the director emphasizes.

“Even the small dumps are filled with rubble, weeds, ground sugarcane from the rum distilleries, in short, there's a lot of irresponsibility. For this reason, I insist, we clean an area with great effort, and within hours it's back to the same state, as if it were only our problem. And the point is, there needs to be understanding and cooperation.”

Danicelis Velázquez Martínez, Deputy Director of Hygiene and Necrology at Community Services, claims that they have been greatly affected because they no longer have their own inspectors to ensure compliance with regulations in the neighborhoods. “We have a contract with the Comprehensive Supervision Directorate (DIS, by its acronym in Spanish), but they don't have enough staff, and we no longer have the support to enforce the law.”

“When we clean an area, we need inspectors to maintain hygiene and prevent people from dumping debris, tree trunks, and branches; and to stop micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs in Spanish) from putting boxes outside and not taking responsibility for their disposal. We desperately need an effective inspection force.”

STRATEGIES ON THE TABLE

At the time of this report, Yaniceidis Lluch Pupo, mayor of the municipality of Las Tunas, had already defined a clear strategy for solid waste collection in the city, amidst the fuel shortage.

“The first thing we are doing, together with the inspection teams, is visiting non-state management entities, MSMEs, and self-employed workers to notify them that they must now contract, through some means, how to dispose of their waste at certified landfills. This is the first time we have done this under the agreement of the City Council.

“And given the current situation, we decided that every approved MSME must come with its waste disposal contract.” We're going to be strict about this. We've come across private businesses with mountains of trash piled up next door, and they claim it's not theirs; now we'll act more firmly.

“In the communities, we're encouraging dialogue. The trash has to go somewhere, so we decide together where to accumulate it until the garbage truck comes and takes it away; but it can't be next to the school, the doctor's office, or the store —we have to make decisions collectively.

“The situation is complex, that's true. Currently, all the cleaning is done by horse-drawn cart drivers, without any mechanization. We only have a little over 80 cart drivers, and we've arranged for them to work in the city as well once they've cleaned their assigned area.” We decided to extend the collection days and informed them that this is how we will have to address the issue of illegal dumpsites.”

The mayor confirms that, in addition to allowing them to charge double their salary for two areas, they are in talks to reduce or eliminate ONAT taxes and to establish communication with the bank to facilitate larger withdrawals from their salaries.
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Las Tunas continues to wait… Since February 5th, the obstacles have increased in an already difficult epidemiological situation due to the illegal dumpsites. Provincial authorities are seeking strategies to increase the number of cart drivers and consolidate a system that allows for more effective garbage removal, but if finding this path was complicated before, what can we say now, with less fuel available?

Based on the results of a recent survey conducted by 26 on this sensitive issue, public concern was loud and clear. Among the most accurate recommendations was the establishment of private companies to support this task.

Likewise, there were calls to increase the income of waste pickers, boost inspector activity, and promote recycling.

In such turbulent times, public opinion demands greater attention. It is essential to monitor how non-state waste management entities, major generators of waste, handle their disposal, and a greater presence and effectiveness of inspection bodies and collective action are needed to curb this growing problem.

The crisis invites us to look inward and refocus on important initiatives. The Urban Solid Waste Management (GRSU in Spanish) project, from the University of Las Tunas and in collaboration with the Raw Materials Recovery Company (ERMP in Spanish), has been studying this issue since 2022 and has viable proposals, based on a recycling culture, for collecting waste generated by the population and other entities. These approaches could bring about positive change.

There is evidence that professionals in the region are committed to this mission, and universities and other initiatives, such as the "Recycle My Neighborhood" project, use science to create a healthier and more prosperous environment. Implementing the Waste Management Strategy, designed for the ERMP (Regional Environmental Management Plan) until 2030, would be another valuable step.

Waste can generate income on a larger scale than currently envisioned here. We need to open our minds and approach the solution from multiple angles, but united in our common goal.

In any scenario, personal responsibility will be vital. Safely managing waste at home, above all, means maintaining hygiene, preventing rodent infestations, and avoiding diseases that primarily affect our families and us. We are living in difficult times, we know that, but we cannot compromise or postpone health, civility, and our children's right to the clean region we once had.