Trash Talk

Pili Drive, Butuan City

Garbage is a hot topic at the moment. The picture above depicts the Butuan City garbage tricycle (or sometimes for the less endowed barangays- trisikad or pedal powered tricycle). Every barangay probably has a different routine and process but so far, of the two barangay I've seen, they only use this mode of garbage collecting. They assign a garbage man, give them a tricycle/trisikad, paid  the minimum (or less?), with no personal protective kits given (as far as I saw), and go around different houses to collect the week's or the days trash.

It is cheap, admittedly. It will save the barangay some dough. But what about the barangay's garbage man's health? Where is this worker's right to safe working conditions?

In the meantime, we are trying to reduce, recycle and eventually have zero garbage output. Hopefully. Knock on wood.