After Maria, Puerto Rico Struggles Under The Weight Of Its Own Garbage
Even before Maria hit, most of the island's landfills were filled beyond capacity and nearly half had EPA closure orders. The storm generated millions of cubic yards of waste and debris.
Outside Puerto Rico's capital, a three-story-high mountain of debris and waste sits smack in the middle of what was a suburban soccer field before Hurricane Maria devastated the island.
Blue bleachers peek out from the edge of the trash pile, as a line of trucks rolls in to dump even more tree branches and moldy furniture. Workmen wearing yellow hard hats operate diggers to add the new waste to the growing pile in the center of the field.
Puerto Rico is struggling under the weight of its own garbage. Even before Maria hit two and a half months ago, the Environmental Protection Agency says most of the island's landfills were filled beyond capacity and that nearly half were
