Environmental Hazards of Waste Disposal Patterns—A Multimethod Study in an Unrecognized Bedouin Village in the Negev Area of Israel

ABSTRACT

The Bedouin of the Negev region of Israel are a formerly nomadic, indigenous, ethnic minority, of which 40% currently live in unrecognized villages without organized, solid waste disposal. This study, using both quantitative and qualitative methods, explored the transition from traditional rubbish production and disposal to current uses, the current composition of rubbish, methods of waste disposal, and the extent of exposure to waste-related environmental hazards in the village of Um Batim. The modern, consumer lifestyle produced both residential and construction waste that was dumped very close to households. Waste was tended to by women who predominantly used backyard burning for disposal, exposing villagers to corrosive, poisonous, and dangerously flammable items at these burn sites. Village residents expressed a high level of concern over environmental hazards, yet no organized waste disposal or environmental hazards reduction was implemented.

KEYWORDS:

• GPS geographical mapping
• indigenous people
• mixed method research
• modernization
• waste management

Acknowledgments

This paper was partly supported by a grant from the Middle East Environmental Futures Project at Brown University, Providence, RI; the Man in the Desert Department and the Center for Bedouin Studies and Development, Ben Gurion University of the Negev; and the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, Kibbutz Ketura, D.N. Hevel Eilot 88840, Israel.