Integrated Solid Waste Management in Medellín, a Commitment of All Citizens

Abstract

Written by the Secretary of the Environment of Medellín and her Deputy Secretary of Environmental Planning, this article presents the municipal administration's (2004-2007) approach to overcoming the traditional final-disposal-centered waste-management model, coordinating work with Empresas Varias de Medellín under the Integrated Solid Waste Management (MIRS) program of the Medellín, Compromiso de Toda la Ciudadanía Development Plan. The authors describe the process of formulating the municipal and regional Integrated Solid Waste Management Plan (PGIRS) in coordination with the nine municipalities of the Aburrá Valley Metropolitan Area, and detail pilot projects underway in Zone 6, the Medellín River corridor in Moravia, and five corregimientos. The text highlights the commitment to dignifying the work of 1,100 informal waste pickers in the city, proposing to replace exclusionary terminology with "Informal Recoverers."