Mexico will be shocking for every conscious traveler who likes to reduce their travels’ environmental impact. This blog post reveals this huge waste problem in Mexico and discovers how you can travel and live in Mexico without contributing to this problem. Are you ready? Let’s dig into the waste:
Before my exchange semester in Mexico, I set myself a new goal: to be more conscious about my waste consumption. Hence, I was even more sensitive to what I saw once I arrived. Additionally, I come from a country with one of the highest recycling rates.
The low awareness of the people in Mexico regarding waste separation is shocking. The amount of plastic that is used for packaging is terrifying. It seemed like the world moved forward by setting restrictions on plastic packaging, but Mexico was not even near this goal. That’s the feeling I had. However, it probably already made some process. The applied plastic ban in Mexico City, which got into force at the beginning of this year, seems to be a massive challenge for businesses in the city. Because of the higher prices of more ecological packaging. Even in restaurants, you can get food served on plastic plates or bowls. In addition, there is a lack of sensitivity from the locals when it comes to plastic, waste, and recycling.
Mexico’s recycling rate
A paper from 2014 about “Pushing Mexico to a recycling culture” explains the ground of the problem: the lack of laws and standards and corruption practices in politics. Also, plastics manufacturing is a critical industry in Mexico. A plastic ban would hurt this economic contributor.
The country recycles only less than 10 % of its waste. From the 123 tons of plastic waste produced in Mexico City every day, only 6 % gets recycled. Most of Mexico’s waste ends up in landfills and pollutes nature and the air and rivers, and part of the trash will most probably end up in the ocean.
Mexico is slowly developing a recycling system. In San Pedro, a municipality of Monterrey, they started to pick up separate garbage, and in some supermarkets are bins for plastic, aluminum and paper. It is a start, although sometimes it doesn’t work.
Opportunities of good waste management concepts
Well, recycling and waste concern everyone: society, government, garbage collection services, businesses. The government faces considerable financial and political restraint regarding sustainable waste management. In addition, the lack of adequate laws and the corruption practices politicians. The garbage collection services also hire informal labor. Additionally, society’s lack of recycling culture and awareness. The Mexican culture is alike the American culture, with unsustainable consumption practices. There are a lot of concepts of good waste management out there. Mexico needs the willpower to implement them and educate its people.
Behind Tulum’s Eco Resorts
Tourism is a contributor to the waste problem of Mexico. The Yucatan Peninsula has gained massive popularity in the last few years. With the growing amount of tourist’s problems arise. Where should the trash go? White sand beaches, turquoise water, luxurious bungalows and hotel complexes, but what’s the price for it? While Tulum, Cancun, and Playa de la Carmen have grown to an internationally known tourism destination, the infrastructure wasn’t ready for this growth. The landfill in the beautiful bush outside of Tulum proves that. Have a look at this video:
How to reduce your impact while visiting Tulum? Alden wrote about that at Ecocult:
My waste reduction journey while living abroad in Mexico
It’s the small steps! First, I’m not perfect at trying to reduce waste, especially plastic. Sometimes it is easy. When I plan to go to the market, I take my canvas bags or reusable food containers with me. But other times I consume or buy something without bringing my containers or bags.
When it comes to recycling, I started to recycle, when I understood how recycling in my neighborhood works. There are plastic, paper, and aluminum containers near my place, mostly at the entrance area of a supermarket. I haven’t found a recycling bin for glass which disturbs me the most. Isn’t glass the easiest waste to recycle? Unfortunately, glass splitters are often found on the streets, but no glass containers for recycling. It’s frustrating.
Tips to reduce waste while traveling
Take containers & canvas bags
Have your reusable containers and canvas bags ready! The best part is you can use canvas bags also to organize your backpack. You can put small items in them or keep your electronics arranged. So, there is no way you can’t travel without them. Canvas bags or simply beneficial. If you are on a city tour, put them in your day backpack. Having them with you all the time is helpful when you do a spontaneous trip to the supermarket.
The same applies to containers, such as foldable food containers. They require only a little space in your bag and whenever you fancy street food you can consume it plastic free.
Other products that can help you to be more conscious are reusable cutlery, straw and coffee mug, or foldable cup.
Shop at the market or find a Zero Waste Store
At local markets, usually, you can find food packages free. Take your canvas bags, jars, and other reusable containers with you to the market and shop sustainably!
Zero Waste Stores are getting more and more trendy. A quick search on the internet will show you where you can find a store next to you. Most of the time those stores have containers or paper bags for you.
Waste Collection – Volunteer
Find waste collection volunteer programs are similar events where you meet like-minded people to make a cleaner place for a city/beach/town/forest. You can find some of those programs on websites like meet-up, facebook events or groups, volunteer sites or similar platforms.
Party & social gathering culture in Mexico
It isn’t enough to bring your reusable containers and canvas bags out with you to explore the city. No, unfortunately, the lack of awareness is a real thing also among young people. For parties and social gatherings plastic plates and cutleries are standard. While for many Europeans it isn’t. Make an impact, inspire people and use your reusables or if you are the organizer at least provided paper tableware. And have fun!
The good news: changes in Mexican waste management
Around ten years ago, one of the world’s most giant landfill Bordo Poniente, in Mexico, got closed. The endless growing rubbish dump was a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions and took up storage space. The authorities had plans to build a biogas plant to generate electricity for street lighting. Society got educated about recycling and advised separating their organic waste and inorganic. Nowadays, trash gets separated and recycled in glass, cardboard, paper, tin, plastics, and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Inorganic recycled waste is utilized in cement kilns. This change came, of course, with challenges that need to be overcome. While doing more research about this topic, it seemed that this biogas plant was never built because of the lack of political will.
In one of my university courses, I learned about the Circular Economy and best practices example, in Mexico, in Nuevo Leon. The village of Higuera’s is almost self-sustained. It created Regional Circular Value Ecosystems with its businesses, with the goal to reduce waste and provide value. The town has a goat cheese factory, an oregano plantation, a lake and urban gardens and a red worm farm. Cheese whey is getting used for feeding the fish in the lake. The red worm farm produces solid humus used for the organic garden that provides the locals. The oregano plantation has leaves and stems to create oil encapsulation for nutraceutical purposes.
If you want to know about the possible market opportunities for a circular economy in Mexico, check this paper.
A zero-waste lifestyle in Mexico. Challenge accepted!
But what’s the answer to these problems? A few weeks ago, I met Jen. She moved from Hidalgo, a state near Mexico City, to the north. Jen got a job in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon. Her Zero Waste journey began four years ago:
I decided to start with this zero waste Lifestyle due to a post by Lauren Singer, the creator of Trash is for Tossers.
I was impressed by how she could make just one jar of trash, so I started to research how she did it. So, I made my own reusable bags, bought reusable straws, and always brought my containers with me. One of the most challenging parts was bringing my containers and asking to put my food in them. Carrying my reusable bags was easy because I used to visit markets and it was easy to find many things in bulk.
When I started, it didn’t feel difficult because I used to live in places where you could find products without plastic, and my family started to do the same, my mom still carries her reusable bags for groceries. They separate the waste and give to someone for recycling.
I miss when I could go by bike to work, but I can’t do it anymore because this city doesn’t allow me. I used to leave my organic waste in a school because they made compost and but then I started to do my own compost, is something straightforward and you don’t need too much space.
And something great here is you can hire a service to give your organic waste and then they return it in compost.
From Hidalgo to Monterrey
Although I live in the same country, the lifestyle in the middle of the country is very different than in the north. I have been living in Monterrey for four months. It has not been easy to return to my eco habits. I couldn’t find a market near but is easily find a supermarket and all in there are packaged foods. Hence, I started to produce more waste, also there are recycle bins in the supermarkets, but I’m not sure that they really recycle it. Now I have to move by car because the distances here are large and the public transport isn’t the best.
My life has changed completely but I continue doing my best. I try to return all the eco habits that I created four years ago unless which I can keep, like carrying my reusable containers and my bags, buying second hand, btw is something easy to find here. I have to remember and I want you to keep that in mind, EVERY LITTLE CHANGE COUNTS.
The outtake of reducing waste in Mexico
As Jen says, every little change counts. If we change consumption habits and increase recycling conduct, it makes a big difference. No one needs to go from 0 to 100. It’s the small changes. Let’s make the world a better place by being more conscious of what and how to consume.
Because we don’t want to have more plastic in the ocean than fish, right?
The author of the blog
Lisi is an adventurous, mostly solo traveler from Austria. She likes to travel slowly, discover underrated countries/regions, and of course, learn about cultures. She has been traveling the world and creating travel content since 2016. With a degree in tourism management and a passion for travel and cultures, she wants to tell stories that inspire her readers and help them travel more consciously.
[…] my trip to Mexico, I set myself the goal of reducing my waste while traveling. When I was there and saw how difficult […]