Solid waste management is one of the country’s most serious environmental issues, many of the country’s water bodies exhibit high pollution levels, and poor air quality is a major issue in the Guatemala City Metropolitan Area.
No system for monitoring solid waste generation is in place. A 2013 study [1] estimated countrywide solid waste generation over the 2001–2010 period. About 112,945,902 tonnes of solid waste were generated in 2010, a 38% increase from 2001. Domestic waste accounted for only 1.4% of the 2010 total, and the rest came from the meat (39.7%), chemical (15.8%), and glass (10.8%) industry, agriculture (17.2%), and other sectors.
Generation rates and composition of domestic waste are periodically estimated by the National Statistical Agency [2]. A total of 2.57 Mt were generated, countrywide, in 2019 and this volume has been increasing (cf. 1.41 Mt in 2000 and 1.79 Mt in 2010) along with the growing population [3]. Each person generated an average (over the 2014–2017 period) of 0.364 kg of domestic waste every day, which mainly consisted of organic (42%), paper (15%), plastic (13%), glass (5%), metal (3%), and other materials (as of 2018).
Municipal solid waste management is mostly limited to collection and final disposal. Household surveys show that the coverage of domestic solid waste collection services has improved only slightly over the last decade. Municipal and private services were able to collect domestic solid waste from only 36.5% of Guatemalan households in 2011, with large disparities between rural (6.5%) and urban (62.9%) areas [4]. Service coverage improved by 2018 [2] to 41.9% countrywide, but regional disparities remained: it was above 80% in the Guatemala and Sacatepéquez departments, but less than 17% in the Petén, Alta Verapaz, Quiché, San Marcos, and Totonicapán departments. Unattended households disposed of their wastes by burning (42.8%), burying (3.5%), or dumping them in ravines, rivers, or the sea (1.4%), or elsewhere (2.8%). While no more than 10.3% of households in the Guatemala and Sacatepéquez departments used to burn their waste, 79.1% and 68.3% of the households in the Petén and Alta Verapaz departments, respectively, did so.
Most final disposal sites are unregulated, open dumping sites [5]. A 2017 study identified a total of 2,240 dumping sites nationwide, 99% of which lacked any control (impermeable lining, leachate collection, etc.) or management infrastructure [6].
Thus, municipal solid waste management is deficient in all its stages and most existent dumping sites become the source of air, soil, and water pollution, release large amounts of GHG, and pose a threat to public health.
No nationwide water quality monitoring network is in place and data available are incomplete. Water quality variables are monitored in some key locations by various institutions.
The National Institute of Seismology, Vulcanology, Meteorology, and Hydrology (INSIVUMEH) monitors physical and chemical water quality variables in the country’s 27 major watersheds. Measurements revealed that the water of only four of the 19 watersheds monitored in 2020 [7] were suitable for human consumption, while the others had chemical (chemical oxygen demand, pH, electric conductivity, or Chloride content) or physical (colour, turbidity) values that exceeded the PAHO’s or national standards and made them unsuitable for human consumption without prior potabilization treatment.
The Amatitlán Lake Authority (AMSA) monitors physical-chemical and biological water variables in Amatitlán lake and its affluents [5], [8]. The lake and its affluents showed the presence of faecal coliforms in all the samplings conducted in 2020 [2], as well as chemical (chemical oxygen demand, pH, or electric conductivity) or physical (colour, turbidity) values that exceeded the PAHO’s or national standards in some sampling dates/sites and made them unsuitable for human consumption.
The Atitlán Lake Authority (AMSCLAE) monitors water quality and other environmental features in Atitlán lake and its affluents. Measurements showed the presence of faecal coliforms in all the affluents examined in 2021 [9]. High loads of faecal coliforms and Escherichia coli bacteria, and high (> 8.5) pH values were found in 2020–2021 at those sites in the lake where water is pumped to supply water (for human consumption) to municipalities around the lake [10]. A total of 99 pollution source points were identified across the lake’s watershed in 2021; pollution sources included dumping sites of solid waste or rubble, and wastewater discharges [11].
The Petén Itzá Lake Authority (AMPI) is responsible for the management of the lake’s watershed. Although no recent data are available, AMPI recognizes that the lake’s water and underground water sources in its watershed are highly polluted and unsuitable for human consumption.
Pollution observed in these surface water sources limits their use for human consumption, recreation, or other uses that involve primary contact, and compromises the wellbeing of aquatic ecosystems [8].
No nationwide air quality monitoring network is in place. However, the main air quality variables (PM2.5, NO2, and SO2) are monitored in the Guatemala City Metropolitan Area through six monitoring stations jointly run by the Ministry of the Environment and the San Carlos University. Annual average PM2.5 values much exceeding the WHO exposure threshold target of 10 µg PM2.5/m³ were recorded in all the monitoring stations during the 2013–2018 period; NO2 values exceeding the WHO’s standard were recorded in some of the stations particularly between 2011–2018. The SO2 concentrations recorded were consistently below the WHO standard. The 2020 World Air Quality Report found Guatemalan cities, as a whole, to exhibit moderate levels of air pollution, with an annual average of 19.2 µg PM2.5/m³, well above the WHO exposure threshold target [2], [5].
The rapid growth of Guatemalan cities is the main driver of solid waste management issues in the country. This has greatly increased the generation — and polluting potential — of solid waste, far exceeding the very limited management capacities existent, due to: the highly insufficient and inadequate, or lack of, infrastructure for collection, treatment, and final disposal; the limited capacities of, and resources available to, municipal governments (the entities responsible for solid waste management), which constrain their waste management operations and capacity to make the necessary investments in adequate, sufficient infrastructure; and the lack of a dedicated regulatory and institutional framework. Although a national policy on solid waste management has been in place since 2005, the regulatory framework necessary for implementing it has been absent until very recently. In addition, several actors, including the ministries of health and environment, as well as municipal governments, participate in solid waste management activities without an effective coordinating mechanism [5].
Water pollution is mostly caused by discharges of domestic, industrial, and agro-industrial wastewaters, as well as diffuse sources in rural areas (agrochemicals, sediments, and organic waste) [5].
Pollution by wastewater discharges is due to the extremely insufficient collection and treatment of municipal and industrial wastewater. Due to the lack or insufficient capacity of sewerage networks and wastewater treatment plants, most of the wastewater generated in the country is discharged untreated into rivers, lakes, or the sea. The receiving water bodies thus acquire heavy loads of organic matter and become contaminated with various pollutants. Particularly impacted are the Amatitlán lake, which is in eutrophic condition and highly polluted due to continued discharges of wastewaters from the Guatemala City Metropolitan Area [8]; Atitlán lake is Guatemala’s third most important tourism destination and yet is heavily polluted with faecal material [12]; the Motagua, Dulce, and Sarstún rivers have been identified among the major polluting sources of Guatemala’s Caribbean coast, carrying large amounts of solid waste and chemical and organic pollutants that, upon being discharged into coastal waters, increase water turbidity and silting that cause coral bleaching and adversely affect other species such as fish and sea turtles [13].
The use of pesticides and fertilizers in crop fields causes contamination of surface and groundwaters.
Guatemala’s water account 2001–2010 (part of the country’s environmental and economic accounts) [12], [14] estimated the flow of water from the environment to the country’s economy, with the economy, and from the economy to the environment. A total of 15,536 million m³ of water were returned — usually with a degraded quality — to the environment after having been used in the country’s economic activities in 2010. Most of this contaminated wastewater and water effluents are discharged untreated into water bodies or the sea. About 37% of these discharges come from industrial coffee processing; 32.5% from electricity generation; 20.4% from agriculture, livestock raising, forestry, hunting, and fisheries; 6.4% from the industry sector; and 2.2% from domestic use. Although no specific data are available, the pollutant load of wastewaters from the coffee processing industry is known to be higher than that of domestic and other wastewaters [15].
The rapid growth of the motor vehicle fleet and increased use of fossil fuels, together with the inadequate road layout of the Guatemala department, appear to be driving air quality issues in the Guatemala City Metropolitan Area [13]. A total of 4,096,800 motor vehicles (mainly motorcycles and automobiles) were reported in 2020, countrywide, compared to the 2,970,678 reported as in 2015 [16]. About 43% (1,768,930 units) of those vehicles reside in the Guatemala department, making a vehicle density of about 858 vehicles/Km².
Key policies and governance approach
A first national policy on solid waste management was adopted in 2005; this was mainly focused on reducing environmental contamination produced by solid waste by improving their collection, transport, and final disposal. The policy was later upgraded to fully include the integrated management concept into the 2015 National Policy on the Integrated Management of Solid Waste and Residues [17]. The new policy’s overall objective is to implement the integrated management of solid waste and residues in Guatemala through the participation of all the relevant actors and sectors in four comprehensive programmes: institutional strengthening, investments, technical and managerial strengthening, and outreach and citizens participation. The Ministry of the Environment issued the Cleaner Production Policy [18] in 2010, in an effort to reduce the environmental impact of industrial production from its origin.
While the Ministry of the Environment is responsible for formulating environmental policies, other actors such as the ministries of health and agriculture, as well as municipal governments, also participate in solid waste management activities. In fact, municipal governments are the entities responsible for providing municipal solid waste management services. In order to better articulate and coordinate efforts made by the various actors involved, in 2013, the Ministry of Environment created the Coordinating Bureau for the Integrated Management of Solid Waste and Residues [19].
However, the comprehensive regulatory framework necessary for implementing these policies and articulating the various aspects and actors involved in solid waste management has been absent or non-operational until very recently. No national act on solid waste management is in place. As of 2018, only 89 of the 340 municipalities had adopted a local regulation on solid waste management services [2]. It was not until August 2021 that the country’s first Regulation for the Integrated Management of Municipal Solid Waste and Residues was adopted [20].
No dedicated regulatory and institutional framework on water is in place [15].
Until very recently, the Ministry of the Environment was the sole government entity responsible for issuing mandates to evaluate water quality, regulate its potential use, and promote the integrated use and sustainable management of hydrographic basins, springs, and water supply sources.
Article 15 of the 1986 Law for the Protection and Improvement of the Environment just stated that the government should issue the mandates necessary to ensure water is available in the amount necessary to meet human and other activities’ needs. Although numerous proposals have been put forward over the last 30 years, no general water law is currently in place and only a few specific regulations exist (e.g., the 2006 Regulation on the Discharge and Reutilization of Wastewater and Disposal of Sludge [21]).
It was until February 2021 that the Vice-ministry for Water was created within the Ministry of the Environment with the purpose of managing the country’s water resources. A set of Mandates for promoting the protection and conservation of Guatemala’s hydrographic basins [22] were issued also in February 2021. Such mandates include conducting or updating diagnostics of the country’s hydrographic basins to inform the formulation of natural resources management plans aimed at solving environmental degradation issues.
No policy, regulatory, or institutional framework on air pollution is yet in place.
SUCCESSES AND REMAINING CHALLENGES
The lack of integrated policies and regulatory and institutional frameworks for solid waste management and water pollution seems to have played a key role in the development of the current situation. Efforts to fill these gaps have been recently made or are currently ongoing (e.g., the 2015 National Policy on the Integrated Management of Solid Waste and Residues [17], the creation of the Vice-ministry for Water, and the Regulation for the Integrated Management of Municipal Solid Waste and Residues [20]) but these are still to be effectively implemented.
The lack of comprehensive, systematic data on solid waste generation and management, and air and water quality severely limits the enforcement of and overseeing compliance with the few regulations currently in place, as well as the identification of critical zones and targeted application of corrective measures.
The institutions responsible (e.g., the Vice-Ministry for Water, municipal governments) for implementing and enforcing the existent and new regulations would have to also acquire the technical and material capacities to do so.
More importantly, the large investments needed for the proper collection, treatment, recovery, and disposal of solid and hazardous waste might delay or hinder their implementation, given the limited resources and capacities of municipal governments. Addressing water pollution would involve large-scale, costly interventions to collect and treat the wastewater generated across the country. Measures to address air quality issues in the Guatemala City Metropolitan Area are still missing.
Initiatives and Development Plans
The 2008 Land-use Plan of the Guatemala Municipality (as amended) [23] aims at improving the life quality of its inhabitants by steering the orderly development of the Guatemala municipality through the efficient and sustainable transformation, use, and occupation of the territory. The plan aims at steering future urban development towards areas with easier mobility and away from environmentally valuable and risk-prone areas.
Goals and Ambitions
Goals of Guatemala’s National Development Plan K’atun 2032 [13] include that, by 2032, a Water Act incorporating the integrated water resources management approach is in place; at least 30% of wastewaters are treated and reutilized; all the country’s watersheds show good water quality; all the country’s municipalities have implemented integrated solid waste management actions and treat their solid wastes by means of modern sanitary landfills; inter alia.
MARN’s Institutional Strategic Plan 2017–2021 [24] aims at fully enforcing existent wastewater regulations (e.g., the 2006 Regulation on the Discharge and Reutilization of Wastewater and Disposal of Sludge [21]) in order to protect the receiving water bodies, promote integrated management of water resources, and promote the conservation and improvement of the country’s water resources.
- Efforts to amend the lack of integrated policies and regulatory and institutional frameworks for solid waste management and water pollution have been recently made or are currently ongoing but these are still to be implemented. This might be challenging and would likely benefit from support from the international community.
- The lack of comprehensive, systematic data on solid waste generation and management, and air and water quality is a critical need that has to be amended early in the process.
- The institutions responsible for implementing and enforcing the existent and new regulations would have to acquire the technical and material capacities to do so. Financing the large investments needed for addressing solid waste management and water pollution would be challenging, given the limited resources and capacities of local governments.
[2] Instituto Nacional de Estadística. Bases de datos. Estadísticas ambientales. Retrieved November 2021
[3] Instituto Nacional de Estadística 2015. Compendio Estadístico Ambiental 2014.
[4] Instituto Nacional de Estadística 2012. Compendio Estadístico Ambiental 2012.
[5] Informe Ambiental del Estado de Guatemala 2016.
[6] Ministerio de Ambiente entrega inventario nacional de basureros sin control.
[8] Global Water Partnership. 2015. Situación de los Recursos Hídricos en Centroamérica - Guatemala.
[9] AMSCLAE 2021. Informe de calidad de agua de ríos de la cuenca del Lago Atitlán 2021.
[10] AMSCLAE 2021. Informe ¨Monitoreo de salubridad de fuentes de agua para consumo humano, 2021.
[11] AMSCLAE 2021. Informe de inspecciones oculares de puntos de contaminación. Octubre 2021.
[16] Instituto Nacional de Estadística. Guatemala. Estadísticas continuas. Estadísticas de transportes y servicios. Retrieved December 2021.
[18] MARN. 2010. Acuerdo Gubernativo No. 258-2010. Política Nacional de Producción Más Limpia.
[20] MARN 2021. Reglamento para la gestión integral de los residuos y desechos sólidos comunes.
[24] Ministerio de Ambiente y Recursos Naturales. 2017. Plan Estratégico Institucional (PEI) 2017-2021.