Hazards Caused By Domestic Garbage (Garbage Management - 1)

The axiom "Cleanliness is next to Godliness" means, to be healthy and wealthy of health and mind, we need to keep ourselves and our surroundings clean. I am sorry to say, my neighbourhood is in a sordid state with the residents spitting while walking up and down the road in front of the residential apartment block I live in. any vacant plot of land or even on the roadside one will find piles of domestic garbage stuffed in plastic/polythene bags. often we have to clean our window panes as our immediate neighbours through tufts of hair out of their window that invariably stick to our window panes.Often empty packets of soap, mouth fresheners are carelessly thrown out by the people living in the apartment above ours invariably land up in our balcony. They even go to the extent of throwing out bucket full of dirty water out of their balcony, which transforms into "showers of blessing" in our balcony. Little do they realise the inconvenience they are causing not only to themselves but also to the neighbourhood.

The vacant plot of land beside our apartment block is the discuss and short-put throw practice ground for, all the houses around the vacant plot generously dump their garbage bags with a heave and a ho and off the bag is hurled into the vacant plot. If only these residents could represent India in Discuss and Short-put throw in the up coming Commonwealth Games (How true to the nomenclature "Commonwealth": garbage, if disposed properly can become a wealth for the entire neighbourhood.)

Impact on Health

• The garbage decomposes into dirt and dust is easily dispersed by the wind, back into our homes to contaminate our food we cook and the work we drink. The dust also mingles with the water stored in the sump of the houses close to the garbage dumping area.
• These garbage dumps also are breeding grounds of rats, and other vermins, mosquitoes and flies, known to be the carriers of diseases like malaria, typhoid, dengue, filaria, and above all, cholera.
• The decomposed garbage also contaminates the underground water, which becomes the sources of microbial germs.
• Such garbage dumps are high risk areas for children and rag pickers who play in or around the garbage area due to the hazardous chemicals generated by the decomposing domestic garbage dump.
  
• Burning the garbage in the immediate neighbourhood is the most dangerous way of disposing it as many of the plastic and polythene emanates hazardous chemical gases that are dangerous for the health of the residents.
• The strays living on the garbage dumps too are susceptible to the infections and diseases and invariably transfer it to the unsuspecting children and residents coming in contact with them.
  

Diseases and In Caused by Garbage

• Skin and blood infections due to direct contact with waste.
• Eye, respiratory and gastro-enteric problems caused due to exposure to air or wind borne microbes.
• Fumes from incineration of garbage are main cause of cancer too.
• Sputum and nose discharge on the street makes the residents susceptible to the infection and disease like: TB, Swine Flu, etc the person maybe suffering from.
  

Acknowledgement:

Some of the information taken from: UNEP report, 1996