Home Sweet Landfill :(

 

La Churcheca is located in the country of Nicaragua. La Churcheca is Spanish literally means 'the city dump'... which describes it perfectly.  It is an area outside of the city Managua and it is the local waste disposal site.   It is also the largest open air landfill in all of Central America and home to about 1000 people (half of which are children).  The families work at the dump sorting waste.  Fortunately some new housing has been built for about 400 families provided by the Spanish3
The dump became populated with residents after a major earthquake in the 1970s that destroyed 70% of the city of Managua.  People lost their homes and jobs, forcing them to dig through rubbish seeking salvageable materials.  To this day the dump continues to grow and people continue to filter and sift through the garbage hoping for scraps of something valuable.  Vultures also soar over the dump hoping for their share. Over 300 people make the dump their full time occupation. It has obvious health and safety dangers. 

The people who work at the dump are called ‘churequeros’, and are some of the poorest people in Nicaragua.  As many of the workers are under age, it is considered the worst child labor in the country.  The worker in the dump are 'self employed'. Chureca produces approximately 20 million (US $) a year in marketable garbage and Churequeros earn between $1.50 (US) and $2 (US) a day (Bergin, 2008).