The town of Parera, Department of Rancul, Province of La Pampa, Argentina has approximately 3,000 inhabitants and its main economic activity is agriculture and cattle raising, followed by commercial activity.

Currently, the town has an environmental problem caused by the open-air landfill, where garbage is set on fire every day to reduce its size. The landfill covers an area of 2.51 hectares and is located 1.21 km from the town's central square in a straight line, directly causing negative effects on the health and well-being of the community.

Waste separation programs have already been implemented in the town. One of them was the collection of "Love Bottles", which are plastic bottles that are filled and compacted with other plastics. Other campaigns include the collection of paper and plastics at local events such as the Fiesta Provincial de la Rosa. In turn, an opinion study carried out by students from the University of Buenos Aires found, based on a sample of 214 inhabitants over 18 years of age, that 90% of the inhabitants of Parera disagree with the current location of the landfill and 65% carry out some form of waste separation at source.

Through virtual surveys and interviews conducted by the Department of the Environment, the following information has been detected: i) 64.9% know the value of recyclable materials in the city; ii) 95% are willing to take their recyclable materials to the collection points that they have determined themselves: educational institutions, municipal spaces and businesses; iii) 94% agree that the creation of a Neighborhood Common Fund would solve the garbage problem; iv) more than 60% mentioned that a commission should be set up made up of representatives from the different institutions and the technician in charge of the environmental area for the development of the Neighborhood Common Fund; and v) more than half of the respondents said they were interested in participating in the commission where the issues related to the fund would be discussed.

• Green points: 28 containers will be placed at 7 points in the locality selected by citizens to recycle materials such as plastics, glass, aluminum/ tinplate and cardboard.
• Campaign to disseminate the proposal: explanatory posters will be installed in each of the places where the containers are located and any other strategic point (such as commercial premises). The initiative will also be disseminated through social networks. 
• Collection of recyclable materials and their subsequent sale: i) neighbors will take their clean and dry recyclable waste to the green points, ii) they will classify them by materials according to what the posters indicate, iii) the material will be sold to a cooperative and, iv) the proceeds will form the neighborhood common fund.

Direct results: 

• 28 containers installed in strategic locations proposed by the community. 
• An annual investment fund of approximately 5 million pesos (US$ 25,000)
• 28 posters at recycling stations
• Creation of a platform where proposals that could be financed by the Neighborhood Common Fund will be uploaded.
• Implementation of a project with social impact. 

Indirect results: 

• The frequency of landfill burning is reduced.
• Joint work is achieved between institutions, citizens and the municipality.
• Improved separation at source in homes and institutions.
• A social and economic benefit is generated from the implementation of the initiative financed by the neighborhood common fund. 
• Citizens are committed to caring for the environment and have better waste management habits.

Expected impact

• Decrease by 30% the waste sent to the landfill, in order to reduce the frequency of burning and the volume of the landfill.
  

• Puma (local gas station that will provide all logistical support).
• "El Ciclo" (recycling company that will be in charge of removing the materials from the locality and will pay the previously established)

• Yamila Lucrecia Gerbaudo, Engineer in Natural Resources and Environment. Director of the Environmental Department of the Municipality of Parera (La Pampa, Argentina). 
• Francisco Ekstrom, Civil Engineer. Member of Red de Cambio. Mail: fran.ekstrom@gmail.com, Buenos Aires (Argentina)