Photos: El Tirabichi: Nogales, Mexico
- Updated
El Tirabichi, a dump, opened in the 1990's. The waste pickers are organizing to fight the closure of it.
Hugo Diaz, center and Martin Lizarraga, far left, work together clear the trash out of a municipal truck that has come to el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Waste pickers will jump onto trucks that drive into the dump, the first ones on the truck have first dibs on the recyclables they want to sell. While in the truck they will toss to the side what they want to scavenge. Diaz picks out cardboard and plastic bottles. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Hugo Diaz, upper left, and Martin Lizarraga work together clear the trash out of a municipal truck that has come to el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Waste pickers will jump onto trucks that drive into the dump, the first ones on the truck have first dibs on the recyclables they want. While in the truck they will toss to the side what they want to scavenge. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Hugo Diaz, center, has been living at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, for about year. The dump opened 20 years ago as a transfer station. The Mexican government wants to close the dump and move the workers to a landfill to do their scavenging. Over the years, people have built small makeshift homes out of discarded items at the dump. Diaz and many others lost their homes to a fire on March 12. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
In the early morning sun as a light rain falls, a waste picker sifts through trash at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. The dump opened 20 years ago as a transfer station but the government plans to shut it down by the end of June. About 15 million people worldwide work as scavengers, with a global economic impact of more than $21 billion a year, the World Bank estimates. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Like a king with his treasures, Hugo Diaz, set up a mattress to get shade from the harsh sun and sits among items he scavenged at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Diaz has lived at the dump for over a year. His pile on the right was collected in one day and could sell for about $30 when the minimum wage is Mexico is $5 a day. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Hugo Diaz runs after a truck that has come to el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Waste pickers will jump onto the trucks as they drive in. The first ones on the truck have first dibs on the recyclables they want. While in the truck they will toss to the side what they want to scavenge. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Hugo Diaz spent a couple of hours extracting copper from a piece of equipment he scavenged at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Copper is the most precious metal to scavenge, bringing in $4.00 per kilo when sold to a recycling company. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Large dump trucks are a rare sight at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Waste pickers gather around to scavenge recyclables like plastic bottles, cardboard and metals to sell to private recycling companies. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Arturo Santana, 35, continues to dig through the pounds of trash at el Tirabichi as the sun begins to set. The dump, in Nogales, Sonora, is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from border. Like many other waste pickers, Santana lived in the United States, in Iowa and still has a children there. El Tirabichi is a waste transfer station that opened in the 1990s. The city government voted to contract a private company to be in charge of the main landfill in March and to shut down the transfer station after a March fire left one person dead and burned dozens of homes. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Juan Carlos Ramos, 31, is in charge of making dinner for the rest of his friends on this evening at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Everyone takes turns cooking for the group, but they all agreed that Ramos is the best cook. A meal of pork rinds and chicken wings was provided by a truck driver. Most waste pickers will just eat when they are hungry and sleep when they are tired. They work all the time. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Juan Carlos Ramos, 31, enjoys the chicken wings and pork rind dinner he prepared for himself and friends at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Most waste pickers will just eat when they are hungry and sleep when they are tired. They work all the time. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Jorge Ariel Diaz, 63, crouches down by the fire he built to cook his food after a day of scavenging at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Like many other waste pickers, Diaz spent 15 years in the United States, including about three years working construction in Arizona. Most of the scavengers are not from Nogales and came to el Tirabichi when they were deported from the United States. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
El Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, stays open all night. As trucks come in to drop off trash, waste pickers are ready to scavenge for recyclables they can sell to private recycling companies. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Petra López, 73, followed the city’s dumps for more than five decades until she settled at el Tirabichi, about five miles from the U.S.-Mexico border in the 1990s. Originally from Agua Prieta, she arrived in Nogales, Sonora in her teens. Decades of inhaling the methane gases from rotting waste made her sick. She says the gasses put her in a coma for eight days and the doctors said she shouldn't go back. En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical neighborhood church, helped her find a house to rent and are paying the first two months, but she still hasn’t gotten used to living there. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Heidi Figueroa, 31, far right, talks before the start of the International Worker's Day march through downtown Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. Figueroa works at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales that opened in the 1990's. The waste pickers are organizing to fight the closure of the dump which the city voted to close after a March fire left one person dead and burned about a dozen homes. It has given a contract to a private company to manage the city’s landfill which the workers say will leave them without jobs. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Belkin Sandoval, 9, plays with some water at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico where her mother Heidi Figueroa, 31, separates garbage in order to sell items such as plastic bottles, cardboard and metals to small private recycling companies. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Heidi Figueroa, 31, and Carlos Sandoval, 60, sort through a bag of bottles to re-sell that have been found at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. Figueroa sometimes sorts through the trash herself, but now pays someone else to do it. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Heidi Figueroa, 31, has seven children that range in ages from 1 to 15 years old. Figueroa works at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, separating recyclable materials such as plastic bottles and cardboard in order to re-sell them. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. It opened 20 years ago but now the government is planning to shut it down which waste pickers say will leave them without jobs and in some cases a place to live. Figueroa says she used to live at the dump but now lives just up the hill in walking distance to el Tirabichi. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
A makeshift home still stands at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. Some waste pickers still live at the dump. The Mexican government plans to shut down el Tirabichi and city officials say they are trying to work with the pickers to help them form a type of co-operative to work directly for the private company that will now manage the city’s landfill. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Sandoval lives and works at the dump. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Carlos Sandoval, 60, walks around a home that he says burned down to the ground earlier in the day at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. Some workers at the dump who sift through garbage in order to re-sell items live in makeshift homes that are highly flammable. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Sandoval lives and works at the dump. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Heidi Figueroa, 31, walks past her son, Domingo Sandoval, 4, as he plays with a bottle he found at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, and some water. Figueroa works at the dump separating garbage in order to re-sell items such as plastic bottles. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
A waste picker carries a large sheet filled with recyclables to sell to Heidi Figueroa at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. Figueroa sometimes sorts through the trash herself, but now buys from other pickers and then re-sells the items herself. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Lizbeth Sandoval, 1, drinks out of a bottle of Pepsi inside the home where she lives with her mother, Heidi Figueroa, 31, and six siblings. There is no electricity for the moment in the two-room home. A church group from the U.S. helped build the house for Heidi. Figueroa works at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Daniela Sandoval, 5, left, and her sister, Karina, 9, walk back to their home after purchasing dog food for their puppy, Kevin. The girls live with their mother and five other siblings in a two-bedroom home with no electricity. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Daniela Sandoval, 5, carries her little sister, Lizbeth, 1, down the stairs into their two-bedroom home. The girls live with their mother and five other siblings with no electricity. A church group from the U.S. helped to build the house. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Belkin Sandoval, 8, cleans up around the home she shares with her mother and six siblings in Nogales, Sonora. The two-room home has no electricity or running water sits on a piece of land her mother, Heidi Figueroa, is paying in installments. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Belkin Sandoval, 9, plays on a makeshift tire swing in the back of the home she shares with her mother, Heidi Figueroa, and six siblings. Figueroa works at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
New toys are a rarity for the children of Heidi Figueroa. These toys will stay in their plastic bags because they are too precious to play with. When Figueroa is at el Tirabichi working, her kids will play with items they find at the dump like deflated balls. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Karina Sandoval, 9, left, and her sister, Belkin, 8, play with their chicken in the two-room home they share with their mother and five siblings in Nogales, Sonora. When their mother is not at the dump, the youngest kids are at home with not many toys to play with or anywhere to go. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Domingo Sandoval, 4, takes a short rest on one of the beds in his home. His mother, Heidi Figueroa, 31, works at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Daniela Sandoval, 5, stands nervously at En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical church in Nogales, Sonora. Sandoval and two of her sisters were brought to the church for a children's sleepover. Leticia Tolano, the wife of the pastor, and another member of the church decide to give the girls a bath and haircuts. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Daniela Sandoval, 5, looks up towards Leticia Tolano as she rubs in lotion to try and loosen the dirt that is on Daniela's arms and legs. Daniela and two of her sisters were brought to En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical church in Nogales, Sonora, to get ready for a children’s vigil and sleepover later that evening. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Belkin Sandoval, 8, and two of her sisters were brought to En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical church in Nogales, Sonora, for a children’s vigil and sleepover. Leticia Tolano, the wife of the pastor, and another member of the church got permission from the girls’ mother to get them ready for the even by giving them a bath and haircuts. Belkin was not happy with her shorter hair. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Salvador Montijo, 34, is a recovering drug addict. At el Tirabichi, he said, you can get a small piece of crack or crystal for 50 pesos, about $3, and that dealers hand deliver the drugs to your door. Montijo has become an active member of En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical church in Nogales, Sonora. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
As Heidi Figueroa works at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, her kids are left to play with themselves. The eldest daughter is in charge of watching Lizbeth Sandoval, 1, who sits quietly in her stroller. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Leticia Tolano, wife of the pastor for En las Manos de Cristo, left, has come to el Tirabichi to try and get a couple of the waste pickers to come to Sunday church service. Heidi Figueroa, center, has been attending the Evangelical church for two months but decides not to go to this Sunday service. Tolano takes Figueroa's four youngest daughters for church and bible study. Photo taken: Sunday May 03, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
En las Manos de Cristo is an Evangelical church in Nogales, Sonora that tries to work with waste pickers at el Tirabichi. Some members of the church were pickers at the dump and some are overcoming their drug addictions. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
A wall is filled with photos that show the work done by members of En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical church in Nogales, Sonora, founded 10 years ago. The church tries to work with waste pickers from el Tirabichi, a dump nearby. Some members of the church were pickers at the dump and some are overcoming their drug addictions. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Salvador Montijo, 34, reads the passage on baptism in his bible before Sunday church service at En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical church that does some work with waste pickers at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Montijo is a recovering drug addict and says that you can get a small piece of crack or crystal for 50 pesos, which is about $3 at the dump. Dealers will hand deliver the drugs right to your door. Photo taken: Sunday May 03, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Daniela Sandoval, 5, center, falls asleep during the Sunday church service at En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical church that does some work with waste pickers at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Her older sister, Karina, is seated next to her holding Lizbeth, 1, their youngest sibling. The girls and their mother, Heidi Figueroa, have been attending the church for two months. This is the first time Daniela has fallen asleep at service. Photo taken: Sunday May 03, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Hugo Diaz, center and Martin Lizarraga, far left, work together clear the trash out of a municipal truck that has come to el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Waste pickers will jump onto trucks that drive into the dump, the first ones on the truck have first dibs on the recyclables they want to sell. While in the truck they will toss to the side what they want to scavenge. Diaz picks out cardboard and plastic bottles. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Hugo Diaz, upper left, and Martin Lizarraga work together clear the trash out of a municipal truck that has come to el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Waste pickers will jump onto trucks that drive into the dump, the first ones on the truck have first dibs on the recyclables they want. While in the truck they will toss to the side what they want to scavenge. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Hugo Diaz, center, has been living at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, for about year. The dump opened 20 years ago as a transfer station. The Mexican government wants to close the dump and move the workers to a landfill to do their scavenging. Over the years, people have built small makeshift homes out of discarded items at the dump. Diaz and many others lost their homes to a fire on March 12. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
In the early morning sun as a light rain falls, a waste picker sifts through trash at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. The dump opened 20 years ago as a transfer station but the government plans to shut it down by the end of June. About 15 million people worldwide work as scavengers, with a global economic impact of more than $21 billion a year, the World Bank estimates. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Like a king with his treasures, Hugo Diaz, set up a mattress to get shade from the harsh sun and sits among items he scavenged at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Diaz has lived at the dump for over a year. His pile on the right was collected in one day and could sell for about $30 when the minimum wage is Mexico is $5 a day. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Hugo Diaz runs after a truck that has come to el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Waste pickers will jump onto the trucks as they drive in. The first ones on the truck have first dibs on the recyclables they want. While in the truck they will toss to the side what they want to scavenge. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Hugo Diaz spent a couple of hours extracting copper from a piece of equipment he scavenged at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Copper is the most precious metal to scavenge, bringing in $4.00 per kilo when sold to a recycling company. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Large dump trucks are a rare sight at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Waste pickers gather around to scavenge recyclables like plastic bottles, cardboard and metals to sell to private recycling companies. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Juan Miranda, 32, and his partner Bertha Cuevas, 27, embrace at el Tirabichi as the sun begins to set. The couple lives and works at the dump in Nogales, Sonora. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Arturo Santana, 35, continues to dig through the pounds of trash at el Tirabichi as the sun begins to set. The dump, in Nogales, Sonora, is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from border. Like many other waste pickers, Santana lived in the United States, in Iowa and still has a children there. El Tirabichi is a waste transfer station that opened in the 1990s. The city government voted to contract a private company to be in charge of the main landfill in March and to shut down the transfer station after a March fire left one person dead and burned dozens of homes. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Juan Carlos Ramos, 31, is in charge of making dinner for the rest of his friends on this evening at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Everyone takes turns cooking for the group, but they all agreed that Ramos is the best cook. A meal of pork rinds and chicken wings was provided by a truck driver. Most waste pickers will just eat when they are hungry and sleep when they are tired. They work all the time. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Juan Carlos Ramos, 31, enjoys the chicken wings and pork rind dinner he prepared for himself and friends at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Most waste pickers will just eat when they are hungry and sleep when they are tired. They work all the time. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Jorge Ariel Diaz, 63, crouches down by the fire he built to cook his food after a day of scavenging at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Like many other waste pickers, Diaz spent 15 years in the United States, including about three years working construction in Arizona. Most of the scavengers are not from Nogales and came to el Tirabichi when they were deported from the United States. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
El Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, stays open all night. As trucks come in to drop off trash, waste pickers are ready to scavenge for recyclables they can sell to private recycling companies. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Petra López, 73, followed the city’s dumps for more than five decades until she settled at el Tirabichi, about five miles from the U.S.-Mexico border in the 1990s. Originally from Agua Prieta, she arrived in Nogales, Sonora in her teens. Decades of inhaling the methane gases from rotting waste made her sick. She says the gasses put her in a coma for eight days and the doctors said she shouldn't go back. En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical neighborhood church, helped her find a house to rent and are paying the first two months, but she still hasn’t gotten used to living there. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Heidi Figueroa, 31, far right, talks before the start of the International Worker's Day march through downtown Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. Figueroa works at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales that opened in the 1990's. The waste pickers are organizing to fight the closure of the dump which the city voted to close after a March fire left one person dead and burned about a dozen homes. It has given a contract to a private company to manage the city’s landfill which the workers say will leave them without jobs. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Belkin Sandoval, 9, plays with some water at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico where her mother Heidi Figueroa, 31, separates garbage in order to sell items such as plastic bottles, cardboard and metals to small private recycling companies. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Heidi Figueroa, 31, and Carlos Sandoval, 60, sort through a bag of bottles to re-sell that have been found at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. Figueroa sometimes sorts through the trash herself, but now pays someone else to do it. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Heidi Figueroa, 31, has seven children that range in ages from 1 to 15 years old. Figueroa works at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, separating recyclable materials such as plastic bottles and cardboard in order to re-sell them. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. It opened 20 years ago but now the government is planning to shut it down which waste pickers say will leave them without jobs and in some cases a place to live. Figueroa says she used to live at the dump but now lives just up the hill in walking distance to el Tirabichi. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
A makeshift home still stands at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. Some waste pickers still live at the dump. The Mexican government plans to shut down el Tirabichi and city officials say they are trying to work with the pickers to help them form a type of co-operative to work directly for the private company that will now manage the city’s landfill. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Sandoval lives and works at the dump. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Carlos Sandoval, 60, walks around a home that he says burned down to the ground earlier in the day at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. Some workers at the dump who sift through garbage in order to re-sell items live in makeshift homes that are highly flammable. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Sandoval lives and works at the dump. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Heidi Figueroa, 31, walks past her son, Domingo Sandoval, 4, as he plays with a bottle he found at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, and some water. Figueroa works at the dump separating garbage in order to re-sell items such as plastic bottles. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
A waste picker carries a large sheet filled with recyclables to sell to Heidi Figueroa at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. Figueroa sometimes sorts through the trash herself, but now buys from other pickers and then re-sells the items herself. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Hundreds of birds fly and hover over el Tirabichi in Nogales, Sonora. Waste pickers spend their day scavenging for recyclables as birds watch from high above. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Lizbeth Sandoval, 1, drinks out of a bottle of Pepsi inside the home where she lives with her mother, Heidi Figueroa, 31, and six siblings. There is no electricity for the moment in the two-room home. A church group from the U.S. helped build the house for Heidi. Figueroa works at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Daniela Sandoval, 5, left, and her sister, Karina, 9, walk back to their home after purchasing dog food for their puppy, Kevin. The girls live with their mother and five other siblings in a two-bedroom home with no electricity. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Daniela Sandoval, 5, carries her little sister, Lizbeth, 1, down the stairs into their two-bedroom home. The girls live with their mother and five other siblings with no electricity. A church group from the U.S. helped to build the house. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Belkin Sandoval, 8, cleans up around the home she shares with her mother and six siblings in Nogales, Sonora. The two-room home has no electricity or running water sits on a piece of land her mother, Heidi Figueroa, is paying in installments. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Belkin Sandoval, 9, plays on a makeshift tire swing in the back of the home she shares with her mother, Heidi Figueroa, and six siblings. Figueroa works at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
New toys are a rarity for the children of Heidi Figueroa. These toys will stay in their plastic bags because they are too precious to play with. When Figueroa is at el Tirabichi working, her kids will play with items they find at the dump like deflated balls. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Karina Sandoval, 9, left, and her sister, Belkin, 8, play with their chicken in the two-room home they share with their mother and five siblings in Nogales, Sonora. When their mother is not at the dump, the youngest kids are at home with not many toys to play with or anywhere to go. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Domingo Sandoval, 4, takes a short rest on one of the beds in his home. His mother, Heidi Figueroa, 31, works at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. The dump is located in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood about five miles from U.S./Mexico border. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
While at home Lizbeth Sandoval, 1, sits quietly and examines some greenery she's picked up. Her mother, Heidi Figueroa, works at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Daniela Sandoval, 5, stands nervously at En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical church in Nogales, Sonora. Sandoval and two of her sisters were brought to the church for a children's sleepover. Leticia Tolano, the wife of the pastor, and another member of the church decide to give the girls a bath and haircuts. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Daniela Sandoval, 5, looks up towards Leticia Tolano as she rubs in lotion to try and loosen the dirt that is on Daniela's arms and legs. Daniela and two of her sisters were brought to En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical church in Nogales, Sonora, to get ready for a children’s vigil and sleepover later that evening. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Belkin Sandoval, 8, and two of her sisters were brought to En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical church in Nogales, Sonora, for a children’s vigil and sleepover. Leticia Tolano, the wife of the pastor, and another member of the church got permission from the girls’ mother to get them ready for the even by giving them a bath and haircuts. Belkin was not happy with her shorter hair. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Salvador Montijo, 34, is a recovering drug addict. At el Tirabichi, he said, you can get a small piece of crack or crystal for 50 pesos, about $3, and that dealers hand deliver the drugs to your door. Montijo has become an active member of En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical church in Nogales, Sonora. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
As Heidi Figueroa works at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora, her kids are left to play with themselves. The eldest daughter is in charge of watching Lizbeth Sandoval, 1, who sits quietly in her stroller. Photo taken: Saturday May 02, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Leticia Tolano, wife of the pastor for En las Manos de Cristo, left, has come to el Tirabichi to try and get a couple of the waste pickers to come to Sunday church service. Heidi Figueroa, center, has been attending the Evangelical church for two months but decides not to go to this Sunday service. Tolano takes Figueroa's four youngest daughters for church and bible study. Photo taken: Sunday May 03, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
En las Manos de Cristo is an Evangelical church in Nogales, Sonora that tries to work with waste pickers at el Tirabichi. Some members of the church were pickers at the dump and some are overcoming their drug addictions. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
A wall is filled with photos that show the work done by members of En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical church in Nogales, Sonora, founded 10 years ago. The church tries to work with waste pickers from el Tirabichi, a dump nearby. Some members of the church were pickers at the dump and some are overcoming their drug addictions. Photo taken: Friday May 01, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Salvador Montijo, 34, reads the passage on baptism in his bible before Sunday church service at En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical church that does some work with waste pickers at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Montijo is a recovering drug addict and says that you can get a small piece of crack or crystal for 50 pesos, which is about $3 at the dump. Dealers will hand deliver the drugs right to your door. Photo taken: Sunday May 03, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
Daniela Sandoval, 5, center, falls asleep during the Sunday church service at En las Manos de Cristo, an Evangelical church that does some work with waste pickers at el Tirabichi, a dump in Nogales, Sonora. Her older sister, Karina, is seated next to her holding Lizbeth, 1, their youngest sibling. The girls and their mother, Heidi Figueroa, have been attending the church for two months. This is the first time Daniela has fallen asleep at service. Photo taken: Sunday May 03, 2015
- Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star
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