Zero Waste Program

Zero Waste Program, Bogotá, Colombia - © By Pedro Felipe - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=37058080

Trash truck in Bogotá - ©By Pedro Felipe - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=37058080

Zero Waste Program

Status

ongoing

City

Bogotá

Main actors

Local Government, City Government, Supranational / Intergovernmental Institutions, Private Sector, NGO / Philanthropy, Community / Citizen Group

Project area

Inner City

Duration

Ongoing since 2011

The Zero Waste Program aims to reduce waste & increase recycling of waste by community & work force participation and is supported by education & training programs.

Every day the City of Bogota collects 6,500 tonnes of waste. At the Dona Juana waste disposal, 65% of the waste is classified as organic waste. Approximately 16% of the waste is collected and recycled by informal workers. In 2011, the Constitutional Court determined that informal workers should be incorporated into an improved and sustainable waste management system moving forward.

The Zero Waste Program was established to encourage community and corporate participation in reducing waste, increased recycling of waste and enhancing the social, environmental and sustainable development of the City of Bogota.

The inclusion and acknowledgement of waste pickers as a paid labour force in delivering this new model of waste management is vital to the long term success of the program. Efforts to record activities in this area have been made and reveal the following statistics:

20,643 waste pickers have been identified
46 waste picker organizations have been authorized
10,673 waste pickers have been paid

The Special Administrative Unit Public Services is leading the initiative and both the public and private sector are involved as stakeholders.Educational opportunities are provided for the community and corporate organizations while training programs for waste picker organizations and employees are held regularly.

For further information about the case study, click here.

Sustainable Development Goals

Guangzhou Award

This project was shortlisted for the 'Guangzhou Award' in 2014 in the following category: Deserving Initiative.

Learn more

City information

City

Bogotá, Colombia

Size and population development

The city of Bogotá has a total population of 8,080,734, while its metropolitan area has a population of over 10,700,000. (world population review 2018)

Population composition

The 2005 census put the population density for the city at approximately 4,310 people per square kilometer. The rural area of the capital district only has about 15,810 inhabitants. The majority of the population is European or of European-mixed descent. The people of mixed descent are those of Mestizo origin. There is a small minority of Afro-Colombian and Indigenous people as well. The city has recorded significant growth for a number of years and is still growing at a rate of 2.65%, this is largely due to internal migration. Historically, Bogota’s main religion was Roman Catholic and the city is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese. In the most recent census, a large portion of the population declared they are non-practicing. (world population review 2018)

Main functions

Bogotá lies in central Colombia and is 2,640 metres about sea level in the Northern Andes Mountains. It is the capital and largest city of Colombia and the educational, cultural, commercial, administrative, financial, and political center. Bogotá is a territorial entity and has the same administrative status as the Departments of Colombia.

Main industries / business

Bogotá is the headquarters for all major commercial banks, and the Banco de la República, Colombia's central bank as well as Colombia's main stock market. As the capital city, it houses a number of government agencies including the national military headquarters and is the center of Colombia's telecommunications network. Additionally, most companies (domestic and international) in Colombia have their headquarters in Bogotá. Bogotá is a major center for the import and export of goods for Colombia and the Andean Community in Latin America and is the home of Colombia's tire, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries. Bogotá is the hub of air travel in the nation and the home of South America's first commercial airline Avianca (Aerovías Nacionales de Colombia). Railroads connect Bogotá with the Caribbean coast to the north and via (Puerto Beriro) with the Pacific coast to the west. Bogotá is on the Colombian section of the Pan-American and Simón Bolívar highways and has road connections with all major Colombian cities.

Sources for city budget

The City of Bogotá draws its budget for public expenditure largely from taxes, fees, fines, operating revenues.

Political structure

Bogotá, as the capital of the Republic of Colombia, houses the executive branch (Office of the President), the legislative branch (Congress of Colombia) and the judicial branch (Supreme Court of Justice, Constitutional Court, Council of State and the Superior Council of Judicature) of the Colombian government.

Administrative structure

The Mayor of Bogotá and the City Council, both elected by popular vote, are responsible for city administration. The City is divided into 20 localities and each of these is governed by an administrative board elected by popular vote, made up of no fewer than seven members. The Mayor designates local mayors from candidates nominated by the respective administrative board.

Website

http://www.bogota.gov.co/

Background and objectives

In 2011 the Constitutional Court ordered the implementation of a new waste management model with an emphasis on recycling and a directive to work towards achieving a reduction in the 6,500 daily tonnes of rubbish that are emptied into the city landfill each day.

To achieve this the following steps have been identified:

Create a sustainable waste strategy
Forster a culture of waste reduction by sorting rubbish for recycling
Ensure waste pickers are paid and provided with education and training in recycling
Minimize the landfill use by the promotion of recycling

Implementation

The UAESP has entered into service agreements with public entities and the private sector to facilitate the program. Educational materials (youtube, webpage, magazine) are available to citizens and employees and education programs are organized in the community and workplaces. In addition, regular meetings are conducted with the waste pickers to discuss the program’s progress.

Financing and resources

A budget of $US80,537.00 has been allocated to UAESP, the leader of the initiative, for the period 2012-2016. Further financial support and resources are provided by both the public and private sector including:

The Secretary of Social Integration, Health, Education, Habitat and Culture
The Ministry of Labour
The Institute for the Social Economy
NGO’s
Universities
National Federation of Communitarian Action
National Business Association of Colombia

Results and impacts

The leader of the initiative is the UAESP who have been allocated a budget of $80,537.00 USD for the period 2012 to 2016. Further financial support and resources are provided by both the public and private sector including:

The Secretary of Social Integration, Health, Education, Habitat and Culture
The Ministry of Labour
The Institute for the Social Economy
NGO’s
Universities
National Federation of Communitarian Action
National Business Association of Colombia

Barriers and challenges

The Zero Waste Program is the first of its kind for Bogota and Colombia. There have been legal and technical obstacles about what is possible and not possible to do. To ensure the future of the program the UAESP has established working groups that monitor the progress of the program and its activities.

Lessons learned and transferability

Bogota aims to be an example to other Latin American cities in establishing a Zero Waste Program. The provision of education and training programs for community members, corporate organizations and the waste picking workforce is paramount to achieving this goal. The inclusion and acknowledgement of waste pickers as a paid labour force in delivering this new model of waste management is vital to the long term success of the program.

References

- Bogota, Columbia, Zero Waste Program: a focus in reuse with social inclusion, Guangzhou Award for Urban innovation, http://www.urban-innovations.org/index.php/Zero_Waste_Program:_a_focus_in_reuse_with_social_inclusion (accessed 26th September 2016)