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The access to the contents of this doctoral thesis it is limited to the acceptance of the use conditions set by the following Creative Commons license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/?lang=en Municipal waste, environmental justice, right to the city and the irregular economy: Valuing the work of informal waste pickers in the Catalan recycling sector Doctoral thesis of: Michael Thomas Rendon Doctorate in Sociology, Department of Sociology Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona Supervisors: Dr. Josep Espluga Trenc Dr. Joan Miquel Verd Barcelona, June 2020 Acknowledgments My first thank you goes to Josep “Pep” Espluga Trenc, who has guided me on a 3-year journey with kindness, patience, expertise, and friendship. He has been everything that one could ask for in a mentor: knowledgeable of the subject and process, available while giving me space, excited about the work, and always open to meeting over beers. As well, he has opened up his life and family to Jenny and me, and we are forever grateful to him, Arantxa, Laia, and Montserrat. Joan Miquel Verd for his friendship, guidance, and methodological expertise. Thank you for responding to my email 4 years ago saying that there was a place for me at the UAB. That simple act changed my life. Jenny McKenzie, my everything. For agreeing enthusiastically to come on this adventure with me and charter the unknown waters together. Thank you for getting me out of the apartment and on top of mountains, inside old monasteries, next to Roman ruins, past olive groves, among the mushrooms, within the Mediterranean, above the fjords, and across the glaciers to find you waiting on the dance floor. The famous Carme Clapes for her tenacity, intellectual knowledge, and heart, whose size is matched only by her personality. Without her, this investigation would not have happened. A deep bow to all that is Carme Clapes, and all that she does. Astou Toure for translations, cultural knowledge, and her quiet, yet powerful presence. Her intelligence and perseverance are only matched by the strength she carries inside her. Without her, this investigation would have never spread its wings. The El Xiprer staff (especially Ignacio Fernandez) for their daily work of caring for those most on the fringes of society. A group that proudly wears their badges of compassion on their chest, offering an example for the rest of us to follow. May the cypress tree (el Xiprer) continue to grow both above and below the ground. David Perez for his insight, compassion, and smile, whose daily routine is to check in on those less fortunate, which he does with grace and kindness. Paco Cruz for his honesty and candidness. In a world of political correctness, his voice was refreshing. Julián Porras Bulla for his expertise, advice, thoughtfulness and friendship (along with weekend outings with Andrea García-Santesmases). There is nobody I would rather talk trash with in Barcelona then Julián, and without Andrea, Julián and I would never know what each other are saying. Ryan Huggins whose insight helped me understand the cultural and social complexities of the Senegal community. I smell whiskey in our future! (& not the kind you normally drink). Isabel Hernández de la Rosa and Elisabet Rodriguez Domingo for acting as a lighthouse to guide me through the seas of bureaucracy. I would have drowned without you. II Clara Llorens Serrano, my BFF in Terrassa & her BFF Alberto Pastor Martínez. It’s a lonely world when you know few people. You two have opened up your hearts, homes, and lives to Jenny and me, and we hold you close to our hearts. May an endless supply of tomatoes fill your pantry. We look forward to more adventures in the future! Carme Clapes #2 and Pablo Carballo Chaves (the Tinder monk) for helping me with translations and offering friendship. I would still be using Google translate trying to understand what was said. Federico Demaria, Mauricio Chemás (Señor Rendón), Anna Karin Giannotta, Blanca Callén, Nina Clausager, and the rest of the Investigadores de chatarreros. Keep up the Good work. The Chatarreros of Granollers, for opening up their lives to a stranger, and the bravery they demonstrate each day of their lives just to stay alive. You are not in(Visible). I see you. This research includes some of the results of the project "Exploratory analysis of informal waste collection in the city of Granollers," carried out by an agreement between the Autonomous University of Barcelona, ECOEMBES and the Agència de Residus de Catalunya (Waste Agency of Catalonia) (agreement no. 16881). We especially thank the ECOEMBES Catalan office for its support in financing this agreement, and to the board members of the Agència de Residus de Catalunya for their genuine interest in the project. III Table of contents Abstract………………………………………………………………………………………. IX Acronyms…………………………………………………………………………………...... XIII Tables, figures, maps and pictures……………………………………………………….… XV Introduction I 1. The informal recycling sector………………………………………………………… 1 2. The object of study: Informal waste pickers in Catalonia……………………………. 2 3. Perspective and method………………………………………………………………. 3 4. Presentation of the contents…………………………………………………………... 4 PART 1 P Waste Management, Waste Pickers, Environmental Justice and the Right to the city W Chapter 1: Waste Management Systems C 1. Global Waste…………………………………………………………………………. 8 1.1 A history of waste management…………………………………………………. 9 1.2 Waste composition and environmental impacts……………………………….… 11 1.3 Waste management in the modern world………………………………..………. 13 2. United Nations/Europe & Agenda 21……………………………………………..….. 17 3. Waste management in Spain………………………………………………………….. 19 3.1 Joining the European Union and incineration……………………………………. 19 3.2 Ecoembes, Ecovidrio and paper/cardboard………………………………………. 21 4. Waste Management in Catalonia………………………………………………….….. 21 5. Granollers/Vallès Oriental – Location of the case study…………………………..…. 27 5.1 Deixalleries…………………………………………………………………...….. 28 5.2 Las Recuperadoras……………………………………………………………….. 30 6. Zero Waste/Circular economy in the EU and Catalonia……………………………… 31 Chapter 2: Waste Pickers and the Informal Recycling Sector C 1. A Global Phenomenon…………………………………………………………..……. 34 1.1 The activities of the informal recycling sector……………………………..…….. 36 1.2 Prejudice and stigma……………………………………………………………... 38 2. Waste Pickers in Europe……………………………………………………….……... 40 3. Waste Pickers in Spain……………………………………………………………..…. 42 4. Waste Pickers in Barcelona…………………………………………………………… 45 4.1 Barcelona’s history of informal waste pickers………………………………..….. 45 4.2 The Nave……………………………………………………………………..…... 48 5. Waste Pickers of Granollers – Previous Campaigns………………………………….. 52 5.1 2013 Campaign……………………………………………………………..……. 53 IV 5.2 2014 Campaign……………………………………………………………...…… 54 5.3 2015 (in)Visibles Campaign………………………………………………...…… 57 5.4 2017 Campaign………………………………………………………………...… 58 Chapter 3: Environmental Justice and The Right to the City C 1. History and successes of environmental justice……………………………….……... 61 2. Definitions of environmental justice……………………………………………….… 64 2.1 17 Principles of environmental justice…………………………………………… 66 2.2 Environmental Protection Agency’s definition of environmental justice……….. 68 2.3 Robert Bullard’s 3 dimensions of environmental justice………………………… 68 3. Environmental justice differences between the US and Europe……………………… 69 4. Urban vs. Rural perspectives on environmentalism………………………………….. 72 5. Environmental justice framework limitations………………………………………… 74 6. Teamsters and Turtles: adding labor to the environmental justice framework………. 75 7. New perspectives on environmental justice………………………………………...… 76 7.1 Environmentalism of the Poor………………………………………………...…. 77 7.2 Working-Class Community Ecology (WCCE)………………………………..… 79 7.3 Degrowth: What it is and its relationship with environmental justice………...… 81 8. 8. Lefebvre’s “Right to the city”…………………………………………………..… 83 8.1 Similarities between EJ and RTTC…………………………………………….… 83 8.2 Space within the city: Perceived, conceived, and lived………………………….. 85 8.3 Three forms of commons within the urban environment………………………... 86 8.4 What constitutes a citizen?..................................................................................... 88 Chapter 4: Conceptualizing the work of the informal recycling sector C 1. The informal Economy: Other forms of work and other types of workers…………... 90 2. Characteristics of informal work…………………………………………………..…. 92 3. Categorizing occupations of the informal waste pickers……………………………... 93 4. Working conditions of the Informal Recycling Sector……………………………..… 95 5. The process of citizenship in Spain………………………………………………...… 97 6. The work of the sub-Saharan chatarrero in Catalonia……………………………..…. 98 PART 2 P Conceptual Framework and Methodology C Chapter 5: Conceptual Framework C 1. Problems and key elements of the approach………………………………………..… 10 2 1.1 The study of the informal recycling sector in Catalonia and it’s challenges…….. 103 1.2 Epistemological and methodological approach………………………………….. 105 1.3 Theoretical approach…………………………………………………………….. 107 1.4 Right to The City as