In the dark early hours of each and every day, squadrons of men start their daily informal employment in the suburbs of Gauteng digging in others’ filthy trash as a means of earning their livelihood. They serve an essential role in the recycling industry, which in turn is part of mankind’s feeble efforts to limit the desecration of the planet. As a way of earning a living, this must rank close to the bottom of the scale in terms of sheer degradation, but it is all they have. It does not have to be that way. It is beyond comprehension why those of us who talk about a better life for all and who bemoan the fact that there is nothing we can do to move towards that goal ignore the small realities that can be reached with so little effort. How simple to place a bag for tins and bottles, one for plastic and one for paper next to the dustbin in the yard, to be put out with the rubbish bin on collection day. Might I venture a guess that this would not affect the free time of the householder...
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