Sorting garbage in Haiti: A source of income with health risks for disadvantaged families

PORT-AU-PRINCE — Sitting in the middle of a pile of garbage, a few inches away from a red and white bag filled with old, torn shoes, Viergélus Noël Juste, a 39-year-old mother of seven, including newborn twins, sifts through garbage daily to support her family. Amidst smoke, flames, waste and even decomposing bodies, she searches for salvageable shoes to clean and resell. Her workplace is a stark contrast to the life she strives to provide for her children, highlighting the lengths she goes to in order to earn a meager income.

“This pile of garbage is not a place a woman should come to,” Juste told The Haitian Times. “But I have to come and sort through the trash to survive.” She sells refurbished sandals for 25 to 50 gourdes ($0.20 to $0.40), earning between 500 to 1,000 gourdes ($3.90 to $7.70) on a good day.

Originally from Jérémie in the Grand’Anse Department, Juste splits her time between seeking help from passersby near the Trois-Mains road near the Port-au-Prince airport and sorting through trash at the Maïs Gâtée dump for items that can be repaired and resold. Now a resident of Warf Jérémie in Cité-Soleil, one of the largest slums in Port-au-Prince, she is one of many heads of households who walk miles daily to find piles of trash and make their living this way. They depend on informal waste collection to support their families. Though the work is difficult and hazardous, it offers a measure of stability amid widespread unemployment and economic hardship.

“We sometimes go to sleep without eating, which is why I came to sort trash very early,” Juste, a widow, said.

An informal economy with health risks

According to 2018 World Bank data, Haiti generates an estimated 6,380 tons of waste per day, or 0.58 kg per person, with the capital topping the list of the country’s major waste-producing cities. Yet, only 12% is collected by formal systems, leaving the rest to accumulate in the streets and informal dump sites.

While Haiti faces significant challenges with waste collection and removal, leading to environmental and public health concerns, it’s important to note that the country is not a major waste producer on a per capita basis when compared to its Caribbean neighbors. The average resident of Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital and most populous city, generates approximately 0.7 kg of waste per day. Other major cities like Cap-Haitien and Les Cayes produce slightly less, with an average of 0.6 kg of waste per person daily.

Despite its waste management crisis, Haiti generates just 0.58 kg of waste per person daily. A relatively low number compared to neighboring countries. The Dominican Republic produces 1.08 kilograms per person daily, and Jamaica follows with 1.00 kg. Even Cuba, known for resource conservation under its socialist system, generates more than Haiti at 0.67 kg per day.

Urban planners say the real issue isn’t the amount of waste Haitians produce, but the country’s lack of infrastructure to collect and dispose of it effectively. Addressing the crisis, they add, will require investment in collection systems, public education on recycling, and long-term waste management solutions.

In Port-au-Prince, pedestrians, vendors and vehicles navigate around these piles, which have become so commonplace that they now blend into the urban landscape—despite their impact on public health.

At dumps like Maïs Gâtée, people of all ages sort through the waste for resalable items. Amid the hazards—open flames, sharp objects and toxic smoke—residents like Cyto Lajoie continue to show up every day. A father of 10, he has been collecting bottles and metal for more than a decade. Unlike Juste, Lajoie sells items that he collects to recycling centers.

“It’s thanks to this that my family survives,” Lajoie said during an interview with The Haitian Times. “I have a wife, children and responsibilities.”

For Lajoie, the closure of recycling centers due to insecurity has limited opportunities, but not his determination. He continues to gather recyclables in hopes that the centers in the Cul-de-Sac Plain will reopen sooner or later.

A national waste management crisis

While many Haitians make their living this way, the environmental and health costs are steep.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in a document titled “Solid Waste Management in Haiti: An exploratory Analysis,” notes that Haiti lacks adequately equipped landfills. Most disposal sites function as open dumps, where waste is burned in the open air. This practice exposes workers and nearby residents to smoke and toxic substances, increasing the risk of respiratory illnesses, infections and other chronic conditions.

“Combustion of these materials can cause lung problems, further worsening the situation for people who are already sick,” said Dr. Samuel Faldor, an intern at the State University Hospital of Haiti (HUEH). Waste contaminated with hospital or industrial materials can also cause skin damage or even cancer, he said.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the open burning of waste releases harmful chemicals linked to asthma, diabetes, skin diseases and the spread of infectious diseases like cholera and dengue.

Despite these health risks, waste collection is not just a last resort for many—it’s the only option.

Moïse Cadet, 30, from the expansive Cité Soleil slum, used to sort waste in another neighborhood before violence forced him to relocate. Now, he earns between 750 and 1,500 gourdes (about $6 to $12) a day by collecting and selling aluminum and copper.

“The country hasn’t offered me anything. I’m forced to stay in this job rather than taking the wrong path,” he said.

Waste as export and opportunity

Despite the dangers, Haiti’s waste has also fueled exports. In 2018, the country exported $3.35 million in metal and plastic waste, according to data from the Bank of the Republic of Haiti (BRH).  

Companies like Environmental Cleaning Solutions S.A. (ECSSA), founded in 2010, previously bought up to 500,000 pounds of plastic per month before ceasing operations in 2021. That waste was partially recycled locally and also exported to countries like China and India.

By 2017, Haiti’s waste exports had surpassed traditional agricultural products like coffee and cocoa. This marked the first time that revenue from waste exports exceeded that of the country’s primary agricultural exports.

Some initiatives to transform trash into resources have recently gained traction in various regions, notably in northern and southern Haiti. Amid the crisis, local initiatives are emerging to turn trash into economic opportunity. 

In the Northeast Department, local authorities in three major cities—Fort-Liberté, Ouanaminthe and Ferrier— have joined forces with Haiti’s Ministry of Environment to create the Solid Waste Recovery Center consortium aiming to build a landfill capable of managing and transforming waste produced in the region. The project, financed by the UNDP with assistance from Japan, expects to provide a sustainable strategy for keeping the northeast clean and provide new revenue opportunities for local businesses.

Broader efforts in the region also include the Northern Department, which inaugurated its first modern landfill in Mouchinette, Limonade, a commune less than 10 miles south of Cap-Haïtien, on Feb. 26.

Hill Plast, a company based in Carrefour— less than 10 miles south of downtown Port-au-Prince, collected in 15 days 40 tons of plastic waste and turned it into fabric for backpacks and baskets. Founder Jhamily Hill Pompilus said her company provides an innovative solution to the waste management problem and creates jobs during high-demand periods like back-to-school season.

“Waste transformation generates many jobs,” said Pompilus. “We turn bottles into useful products—baskets, trash bins, brooms.”

In Les Cayes, the main city of the Southern Department, local company Cosmos Solution works with families and small businesses to separate organic waste at the source. The company transforms it into biogas, offering a cleaner energy source for cooking and electricity. Founder Bernice Charles said this reduces reliance on charcoal, helping to combat deforestation and air pollution.

“This helps reduce reliance on charcoal, protects our forests, and provides sustainable energy to families and small businesses,” said Charles.

A path forward is still blocked in 2025.

In 2017, Haiti passed a law to establish a national solid waste management system agency (SNGRS, per its French acronym), and previously, in 2012, the country banned certain single-use plastic products. Yet implementation remains limited. Waste continues to overwhelm public spaces, even as it supports thousands in the informal economy.

For families like those of Juste, Lajoie and Cadet, trash remains both a burden and a lifeline—evidence of a country rich in resilience, but in desperate need of systems that work for most.

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