Agro-wastes transported from the neighbourhood mixed together with plastic wastes, serve as combustibles to feed traditional loam ovens. The plastics are used as a cheap way to expedite the oven’s fire. Several interviewed women complained about the way fumes affect their eyes and cause respiratory diseases. Burning mixed-wastes, specifically with plastics, is a widespread practice in the entire region of Upper Egypt. Per plantation cycle of sugar cane, 150 000 tonnes of sugar cane wastes are burned.

​Open-field burning of agro-wastes along with other types of wastes is not only waste mismanagement resulting in the loss of potential biomass but also causes environmental dangers and health issues. Plastics produce highly toxic chemicals, which can cause cancer or lead to serious respiratory diseases, counting as two of the top five death causes across the country. 
The high carbon emissions due to burning with plastics contribute to global warming. During winter and spring, a thick black cloud marks the horizon of Upper Egypt due to burning the harvested sugar cane.