Photos taken while producing a short video for the UN Environment Programme on mercury emissions in Dandora, the largest dump site in East Africa.
Dandora in Nairobi, Kenya; East Africa's largest dumpsite.
Dandora in Nairobi, Kenya; East Africa's largest dumpsite.
Officially declared closed in 2001, the dump continues to be run by criminal gangs who make immense profits taking in the city's garbage.
Officially declared closed in 2001, the dump continues to be run by criminal gangs who make immense profits taking in the city's garbage.
A worker hitches a ride on a trash truck entering the site. Lack of government control means anything can be dumped for under 700 kenyan shillings (7 USD), meaning bodies and medical refuse turn up amongst the bottles and cans waste pickers are looking for.
A worker hitches a ride on a trash truck entering the site. Lack of government control means anything can be dumped for under 700 kenyan shillings (7 USD), meaning bodies and medical refuse turn up amongst the bottles and cans waste pickers are looking for.
A Japanese and Kenyan scientific team tests a new mobile mercury monitoring device, which can detect emission levels without lab based testing and has the potential to streamline fieldwork.
A Japanese and Kenyan scientific team tests a new mobile mercury monitoring device, which can detect emission levels without lab based testing and has the potential to streamline fieldwork.
While the Nairobi government recently provided bulldozers, an overwhelming majority of the work is done by hand.
While the Nairobi government recently provided bulldozers, an overwhelming majority of the work is done by hand.
Many of the people looking for recyclables are children, drawn from the slums that surround the area, who skip school either by their own accord or someone else's orders to make money.
Many of the people looking for recyclables are children, drawn from the slums that surround the area, who skip school either by their own accord or someone else's orders to make money.
A group trails behind a bulldozer to see what it unearths. Constant fires at Dandora create a constant haze of smoke, containing mercury amongst other emissions, which will have serious negative health effects for dump workers in the long run.
A group trails behind a bulldozer to see what it unearths. Constant fires at Dandora create a constant haze of smoke, containing mercury amongst other emissions, which will have serious negative health effects for dump workers in the long run.