A total of 44,450 **micro-landfills** were eliminated during 2024, according to an annual management report from the Secretariat of Environment and Public Services of the **Municipality of Salta**.
Out of that total, 33,500 were eradicated by Agrotécnica Fueguina and 10,950 by the municipal administration through cooperatives. In addition, 167 **fines were issued for vacant lots**.
Efforts for a Cleaner Salta
The Secretary of Environment and Public Services of the Municipality of Salta, Martín Miranda, pointed out that one of the main axes of the management they are carrying out is the fight against micro-landfills.
“It has been a very tough battle, but we have not won. It was simply a year in which we started to make a strong impact on the issue of **environmental education**, and also to penalize those who litter the streets, sidewalks, corners, canals, and **create micro-landfills**,” Miranda explained.
It was reported that at least 9,079 recurrent and chronic micro-landfills were removed, at a rate of 22 per day, by Agrotécnica Fueguina during 2024. In addition, 923 debris removals were carried out and 499 paper bins were installed in squares, **green spaces**, and public areas.
Environmental Education and Exemplary Fines
“The solution for people not to create micro-landfills over and over again is to insist on the issue of **environmental education**, and on the other hand, also to fine in an exemplary manner so that those who find it difficult to pay, at least, then tell everyone they know about the situation and no one else dares to do the same. This will take time. We have started well, but there is still a long way to go,” said the official.
During 2024, $22,332.40 were invested in surveillance cameras with **artificial intelligence**, face and person detection to increase control at the San Javier landfill. On average, between 750 and 900 tons of waste entered there daily. Of that total, approximately 10 percent was **allocated for recycling**.
“In some way, they managed to enter what has to do with the **circular economy**, the separation of plastic, glass, cardboard, paper, aluminum,” Miranda indicated.
The amount of **waste entering the landfill** has increased.
“Salta is in the third or fourth position of the cities that have grown the most in terms of population in recent years and, therefore, the amount of waste has increased a lot, but from 2023 to 2024 we have been able to increase by approximately 2 percent, that is, from 8 to 10 percent, the separation we have in the landfill. We hope to reach 5 percent more this year,” Miranda added.
Differentiated Waste Collection
For over three years, the city of Salta has had a service for home waste collection in a differentiated way: recyclable materials on Tuesdays and Thursdays, known as dry waste, and the rest of the days, **wet waste, garbage, and compostable materials**.
Plastics from bottles, jerry cans, lids, and packaging, papers of all kinds, cardboard, aluminum cans, and scrap metal are highly valued elements in the recycling chain. These generate income opportunities for hundreds of families in the city of Salta, including the cooperatives of **urban waste recyclers**.
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