Like many other developing nations, Cambodia finds itself inundated with plastic trash. Due to a lack of municipal waste disposal services, many Cambodians discard plastic trash by dumping it on the ground, which results in it subsequently being swept away into local waterways, or by burning it. The former results in unbiodegradable debris contaminating vital freshwater fisheries in the Tonle Sap Lake, while the latter releases fumes that are hazardous to human health. Further complicating the situation is the reality that recent recycling undertakings have solely focused on collecting plastic bottles, overlooking the improper disposal of plastic bags.
In the city of Siem Reap, the emergence of mass tourism has resulted in a plastic pollution issue of monumental proportions, with a staggering 250 tons of plastic trash removed from local waterways in 2020 by volunteers. Given this situation, entrenching environmentally sustainable tourism seems to be an elusive goal.
Fortunately, travelers in Siem Reap now have the chance to participate in an innovative recycling program pioneered by Ms. Rin Salin, the managing director of Treak Community Centre. As noted by certain researchers, a shortage of proper housing, as well as inadequate waste disposal facilities, is prevalent in many developing countries. Salin’s recycling project addresses both issues, constructing homes and sanitation facilities in Treak Village while preventing plastic bags and other items that are difficult to recycle from piling up in unsightly heaps.
In 2010, after returning from a visit to England with her British husband, Michael Horton, Salin was appalled to see the ubiquitous piles of plastic waste strewn all over her country. This realization prompted her to recall childhood memories of how her mother would construct sturdy walls from a mixture of cow manure, straw, and mud, back in the village where she’d grown up. Emulating her mother’s example, Salin obtained a mold press from an Australian visitor and commenced her objective of converting plastic bags and other garbage into building material. Converting the trash into a usable form was initially difficult, but after some experimentation, Michael discovered an effective solution. By toasting plastic bags inside an oil drum over a charcoal-fed fire, he reduced them to small 2 cm-sized fragments that could easily be combined to form individual bricks. With the use of cement as a binding agent, ten plastic bags are enough to produce a single brick. These bricks possess the same dimensions as conventionally manufactured ones, making them easy to use for builders.
With the aid of visiting travelers, Salin has constructed two houses for destitute families in the village. The bricks have also been used to build a significant portion of the local school. As Michael indicates, plastic bricks are fire- and water-resistant, making them more durable than the wooden houses that rural Khmer families have traditionally used. Moreover, due to the increasing scarcity of timber, it is also considerably cheaper to construct homes and other structures from plastic bricks.
Additionally, the recycling program has enabled Salin and Michael to fulfill the sanitation requirements of villagers who cannot afford the cost of installing conventional toilets. Once again relying on the labor furnished by visitors, Michael and Salin have fabricated five outhouses equipped with a flushing mechanism. The excreta are discharged into septic tanks assembled from concrete pipes that are interred two meters below the surface. Michael emphasizes that pit latrines are unsuited to local conditions, since their contents seep into the surrounding soil during the dry season and contaminate it with pathogens, whilst flooding renders them unusable during the wet season. Under the purview of this program, a total of five outhouses have been constructed.
Salin’s recycling brainchild has evoked great enthusiasm among foreign volunteers, with Michael relating how a Dutch traveler was so inspired by it that he cycled around New Zealand to raise funds for the scheme, generating thousands of dollars. Most of the participants are visiting high school students from Australia. According to Michel, although some of them appear reluctant at the outset, they quickly become excited by the prospect of constructing buildings from garbage, deriving a sense of profound satisfaction from the experience.
Moreover, volunteers gain a deeper understanding of the harsh living conditions of rural Khmer communities from touring the more underdeveloped parts of the village and chatting with the local builders assisting them with assembling the buildings. During the program, volunteers also learn about Cambodian culture and history, in addition to being educated about the health, sanitation, and environmental problems plaguing the lives of Cambodian farming communities. Furthermore, the program provides useful practical experience for students who wish to eventually specialize in the science and engineering fields.
When I ask Michael whether he would be agreeable to the idea of requesting contributions from visiting travelers to continue funding the recycling project, he replies in the affirmative. Donations solicited from volunteers would be used to hire villagers to collect and process the plastic waste by washing and shredding it. The money would also be spent on acquiring more mold presses.
Affordable housing remains scarce in Cambodian cities, a deficiency exacerbated by large numbers of rural immigrants emigrating to urban centers in search of employment. Moreover, inadequate access to sanitation facilities continues to bedevil the Cambodian countryside, resulting in widespread deaths and stunting among young children. Salin’s unique recycling initiative presents an economically viable solution to both sets of problems. Michael is especially keen to emphasize that neither Salin nor he has applied for a patent pertaining to their plastic brick production system, believing that it should be disseminated among other disadvantaged rural communities.
Certain moral theorists have argued that relatively affluent individuals have a duty of beneficence toward underprivileged individuals who would be unable to obtain basic essentials without any external assistance. As travelers who enjoy the luxury of vacationing in comparatively indigent countries like Cambodia, we have the opportunity to fulfill this duty of beneficence by allocating our financial resources and time toward supporting crucial community upliftment programs such as Salin’s recycling initiative.
