Pecking Crumbs of the Mining \'Pie\'

Rohani, 50, was sorting used water bottles in the front yard of her shanty, which had a roof made from used sheet metal. The shanty is a mere 500 meters from a mining company’s ferronickel factory in Kolaka regency.

In the shanty are sacks of used plastic waste and various trinkets. A used goods collector, Rohani depends on selling the items she collects to make a living.

“This afternoon, I will take [these items] to some buyers. If I don’t sell anything today, what will my kids eat? I have no rice and no money,” Rohani said at her home in Dawi-Dawi subdistrict, Pomalaa district, Kolaka regency, Southeast Sulawesi.