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Improvised engineering in the desert transformed thousands of plastic bottles into more resistant houses for Sahrawi refugees in Algeria. With support from UNHCR, the project combined recycling, low-cost construction, and protection against extreme heat, sandstorms, and heavy rains in one of the most arid regions on the planet.
Discarded plastic bottles began forming the walls of houses in the Sahrawi refugee camps in the Algerian desert after engineer Tateh Lehbib Breica developed a technique aimed at protection against extreme heat, sandstorms, and rains that frequently hit the region’s fragile dwellings.
With support from UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, the initiative funded the construction of 25 homes primarily intended for the elderly, low-income families, and residents in more vulnerable situations within the camps near the Algerian city of Tindouf.
In each construction, approximately 6,000 plastic bottles filled with sand are stacked as structural blocks, forming thick walls that are then coated with cement and limestone, with white paint applied to reduce heat absorption under the desert climate.
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How the project of houses made with bottles in the desert started
Originally from the Awserd camp, Tateh Lehbib Breica studied renewable energy and energy efficiency before applying this knowledge to a solution created to meet the needs of the Sahrawi community, which has been settled for decades in temporary camps in western Algeria.
The idea began to take shape after heavy rains damaged houses built with adobe and other more fragile structures used by the refugees, a scenario that led the engineer to seek more resistant alternatives using accessible materials found within the camps themselves.
Initially, the bottles were to be used in a garden installed on the terrace of Tateh’s grandmother’s house, but the project changed direction when he decided to fill them with sand and straw to transform them into structural pieces used in the assembly of the walls.
Circular shape helps to withstand winds and storms
In addition to the reuse of plastic, the circular shape of the houses was also designed to improve the resistance of the constructions against the severe climatic conditions faced by Sahrawi refugees throughout the year in the middle of the Sahara desert.
While the rounded structures reduce the impact of strong winds, the walls filled with sand increase protection against leaks caused by heavy rains and help reduce the effects of sandstorms that frequently hit the region.
At the same time, the proposal also reduces the accumulation of plastic waste in the camps, creating a low-cost alternative in places where conventional building materials can be expensive, scarce, or difficult to transport due to geographical isolation.
Constructions involved participation of the Sahrawi community
In addition to serving families considered a priority, the project mobilized residents of the camps themselves in the collection, separation, and preparation of the bottles used during the works, creating a community network focused on building new shelters erected with reused materials.
The construction of the houses requires lengthy manual stages, as each bottle needs to be properly filled with sand before being placed in the walls, a process that demands collective organization, trained labor, and complementary materials for finishing and coating.
Records from organizations linked to humanitarian housing indicate that, although the initial funding provided for 25 homes, the project achieved 27 completed houses, benefiting approximately 50 refugees distributed across the five main Sahrawi camps in the region.
Low-cost engineering became a humanitarian reference
Even without replacing broad housing policies or solving the prolonged situation of the Sahrawi refugees, the initiative has come to be seen as an example of local adaptation capable of combining recycling, simple engineering, and accessible solutions for regions affected by extreme climatic conditions.
Data released by the United Nations Regional Information Center indicated that, in 2024, about 173.6 thousand people still depended on humanitarian aid in the five Sahrawi camps, considered one of the most prolonged refugee situations in the world.
Internationally known for the proposal, Tateh Lehbib Breica transformed a material treated as waste into a central part of a social technology adapted to economic limitations, resource scarcity, and the challenges imposed by the harsh climate of the Algerian desert.
In the Sahrawi camps, bottles ceased to represent just waste accumulated in isolated areas and began to compose walls capable of offering more protection, stability, and resistance for families forced to live for decades in improvised shelters.
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