In 2007, Israel set up blockades around the Gaza Strip, claiming that many everyday items could also be used to make weapons. As a result, some businesses have resorted to using trash for manufacturing and construction, including prayer mats made out of buckets and doors made out of refrigerators.
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00:00 These plastic fibers started as buckets pulled from the trash.
00:07 Now they're used to make rugs as well as prayer mats.
00:13 At the Hijazi Straw Mat Factory in Gaza, working with plastic waste is the only option.
00:24 Ead Hijazi used to import virgin plastic from Saudi Arabia, but since 2007, blockades have made it harder to get anything in or out of Gaza.
00:35 Stocks of all kinds of important items are down, while trash is piling up.
00:42 So people across the Strip are finding all kinds of ways to run their businesses with materials recovered from landfills.
00:52 Today, we have enough of the same product.
00:55 So how do you deal with trash in a conflict zone?
00:59 We went to the Gaza Strip to see how people make their living off worldwide waste.
01:05 Donkey carts filled with plastic buckets pull up to this factory almost every day.
01:13 Workers saw the buckets into pieces to fit into shredders.
01:19 Washing machines remove any dirt and residue.
01:22 Some excess water is drained, and the pieces are added to the dryer to spin out the rest.
01:29 This type of plastic retains its strength after recycling, despite being incredibly lightweight.
01:38 The plastic is poured into bags and sent upstairs using a lift.
01:46 Next, plastic bits get loaded into the hopper, where they will be heated to their melting point.
01:52 Adding dyes adjusts the color.
01:58 Then the pliable sludge falls down to an extruder, before being pushed out into long strands.
02:06 Water cools the plastic until it solidifies.
02:11 The strands get cut down back into a granule size, and end up in these huge sacks.
02:17 The granules are then sent back downstairs.
02:21 They're heated up again, before being poured into machines specially sized for the mat threads.
02:29 This time, the machines cut the plastic threads to the perfect size for weaving.
02:38 Workers bundle the filaments and walk them over to the weaving machines.
02:42 The factory can produce up to 500 meters of mats every day, but that's way down compared to previous years.
02:53 When Ayad's father opened it in 1986, the factory ran 24 hours a day, with almost 30 employees.
03:02 Now, there's only one shift a day.
03:05 And conflict often dictates work schedules.
03:08 Israeli airstrikes damaged the factory multiple times, most recently in May 2023.
03:16 Ayad still hasn't been able to rebuild.
03:20 Many of the materials needed to rebuild the factory are hard to find, or too expensive.
03:25 The cost of building the factory is high, and the cost of building the factory is high.
03:31 The cost of building the factory is high, and the cost of building the factory is high.
03:37 The cost of building the factory is high, and the cost of building the factory is high.
03:44 Many of the materials needed to rebuild the factory are hard to find, or too expensive.
03:50 Like cement, which was largely banned until 2021.
03:54 The factory keeps running, despite the challenges of operating in a conflict zone.
04:11 We work eight hours a day.
04:13 We have employees who work from 6 to 8.
04:17 In Gaza, electricity is unreliable, running only 14 hours a day on average.
04:23 This is a problem.
04:25 We have a place to heat up and start working, but it takes two hours.
04:31 Power in Gaza mainly comes from two sources.
04:35 An old diesel-powered plant that only meets about one-fifth of electricity demand,
04:40 and power lines from Israel.
04:43 But diesel is expensive, and there's little place to store large amounts.
04:48 The Gaza Strip is one of the most densely populated parts of the world.
04:53 It's been an occupied territory since 1967.
04:57 In 2007, Hamas took control of Gaza.
05:02 Israel, the United States, and the European Union label it a terrorist organization.
05:08 Since then, Israel has restricted the movement of people and goods in and out of the 25-mile strip of land.
05:15 The blockade cut off materials that could be used to manufacture weapons and for other military purposes,
05:22 according to the Israeli government.
05:25 We cannot allow materials that can be used for weapons that would be used against us to cross the border.
05:33 But the list also included a lot of basic items needed to repair infrastructure.
05:39 Over time, supplies of building materials, fuel for cars and power plants,
05:44 parts to fix broken machinery, and even some medical equipment have periodically run out.
05:50 And the garbage heaps kept getting bigger and bigger.
05:55 Mohamed Sabri Musleh, a director at the Water and Environment Quality Authority in Gaza,
06:01 says the territory produces over 2,000 metric tons of solid waste per day.
06:06 Gaza's recycling centers can't handle all of it,
06:10 and the blockade often prevents waste from being shipped to other countries for processing.
06:14 So a lot of garbage ends up in the Strip's two official landfills, where it's regularly burned.
06:22 But because the landfills lack proper firefighting equipment, large fires can burn for days.
06:27 This one in March 2023 took more than three days to control,
06:32 and Gaza called for international aid to help put it out.
06:36 There's so much trash that illegal dump sites sometimes become the only option.
06:43 Since the start of the blockades, unemployment has hovered around 45% in Gaza.
06:48 And the illegal dump sites have become a source of income for trash pickers,
06:52 who sometimes burn electronic waste to salvage copper and other metals.
06:57 That creates clouds of toxic smoke linked to illegal dumping.
07:02 And the illegal dumping of trash is a source of income for the people of Gaza.
07:08 And the illegal dumping of trash is a source of income for the people of Gaza.
07:12 Even though most Gazans suffer from the waste problems,
07:16 those trash piles have become a resource.
07:19 In 2019, one man began recycling paper waste,
07:23 turning it into trays for transporting eggs.
07:27 Akram spent two years perfecting the recipe.
07:30 Workers first rip the trash paper and mix it with water.
07:34 The proper ratio produces a moldable, thick slurry.
07:38 Molds press the slurry into the proper shape, squeezing out the extra water.
07:43 The slurry is then poured into a container,
07:46 and the container is filled with water.
07:48 The water is then poured into a container,
07:51 and the container is filled with water.
07:54 The water is then poured into a container,
07:56 squeezing out the extra water.
07:58 Then they dry in the harsh Mediterranean sun.
08:02 Now Akram employs seven people to make the trays.
08:20 Egg cartons remained off the list of banned imports.
08:23 But local farmers prefer the recycled cartons.
08:26 And every egg is precious.
08:40 More than 60% of people in Gaza are food insecure.
08:44 Isolated from the rest of the world,
08:47 Gaza has been called the world's largest open-air prison.
08:50 But it has about 25 miles of Mediterranean coastline.
08:55 Ali Mahana worked with an artist collective
09:05 to build the Sea is Ours Cafe.
09:08 Planters made from old tires line the path to the entrance.
09:12 One of the doors came from a refrigerator.
09:16 We put these things in the refrigerator,
09:19 and we say, "OK, we need a door."
09:21 We don't go to the traditional option
09:23 and make a door like the one we know.
09:26 We look for something we can use as a door.
09:29 And windows?
09:30 From an old washing machine.
09:32 Inside, the artists run a community center
09:35 that teaches locals how to reuse everything.
09:39 These things encourage us to change our perspective
09:43 that they are just waste that can be used.
09:49 There are cars' tires.
09:57 There are also a lot of solid waste.
09:59 Things that don't need to be put in place.
10:02 Mostly plastic, wood, cloth, broken chairs,
10:08 and storage boxes.
10:10 Despite the war around them,
10:12 the artists cobbled together a mini oasis by the ocean,
10:15 spending their days working on community art projects.
10:19 It's a great addition to our collaboration.
10:23 They have a lot of ideas that surprise us.
10:26 How can we use things,
10:28 like a door or a part of it, for gifts or jewelry,
10:31 to be a source of income?
10:34 The cafe and community space provide a modest income
10:39 for the half a dozen people who work here.
10:41 And while today seems like a peaceful evening,
10:44 there are always reminders of the effects of war.
10:47 This part of the house was destroyed.
10:51 It's being removed for renovation.
10:54 Ali is in talks with the Gaza government
10:57 to open more community centers,
10:59 especially for children.
11:01 The conflict has forced Ali and Eyad,
11:12 as well as many other Palestinians,
11:14 to become unlikely recyclers,
11:16 making the best out of a dire situation.
11:20 I can't say that I'm against the government or the West,
11:24 because I've been dealing with the conflict for years.
11:27 But it's a dream of mine,
11:29 to preserve the environment in general.
11:32 [music]
11:36 [music]
11:39 [music]
11:42 (upbeat music)
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