The Asian reporter., January 01, 2024, Page 20, Image 20

ASIA / PACIFIC
Page 20 n THE ASIAN REPORTER
January 1, 2024
Indonesia’s youth clean up trash from waterways,
but more permanent solutions are still elusive
By Edna Tarigan
The Associated Press
OGOR, Indonesia — At a lake in
the West Javan city of Bogor,
children and teenagers paddle
toward piles of floating trash, pick it up,
and store it in their kayaks, before passing
it to friends sorting it onshore.
The group of around 20 youngsters
started off as a team of one, a decade ago,
when Giri Marhara decided to start clean-
ing up the lake. He was just 16 years old at
the time, and already had a penchant for
wanting to clean up his environment —
from his classroom to his neighborhood.
Young people like Marhara have been at
the forefront of environmental and climate
change movements in recent years:
initiatives like school strikes for climate
action, protests at United Nations climate
talks and around the world, and local
clean-ups have often been youth-led.
When it comes to waste picking, experts
say it’s a stop-gap solution, and the larger
problem of creating too much waste needs
to be addressed. But the relatively
small-scale efforts in Indonesia have
resonated with younger people, attracting
support and attention.
“For me, cleaning up is catharsis,
cleaning up is refreshing,” said Marhara,
who would often be asked by children play-
ing nearby if they could help with the
clean-ups. “I don’t want to miss the oppor-
tunity to educate kids that this is some-
thing that’s positive, something that you
should probably try making a habit too,”
Marhara said, so he encouraged them to
help.
They formed a group last year, called the
Situ Gede Cleanliness Warrior, named
B
after the lake. They paddle or kayak across
the lake, pick up trash, and identify what
can be recycled. A local kayaking group
lends their boats to Marhara’s initiative,
and members take turns between paddling
across the lake or sorting trash shoreside
into what can recycled or reused and what
will need to be disposed.
Over 10 years, Marhara and his friends
have collected more than 5,900 pounds of
trash in and around Situ Gede lake
through various initiatives.
But the country’s trash problem is far
bigger than what the group can take out of
waterways.
Indonesia produced more than 35
million tons of waste last year, according to
Indonesia’s Environmental and Forestry
Ministry. It estimates that 35% of waste in
the country is unmanaged. Garbage on
roadsides and in waterways and natural
environments is a common sight.
Waste is also responsible for around 3%
of global greenhouse gas emissions, ac-
cording to the World Resources Institute.
Much of that comes from food waste, that,
if left to decompose in landfills, can emit
methane, a planet-warming gas that is
around 80 times more potent than carbon
dioxide in the short term.
The trash problem has also raised
health concerns: Plastic waste, for
example, gets broken down into tiny pieces
called microplastics, which can enter the
human body. Some studies suggest it can
impact the endocrine, nervous, and
immune systems, and can carry an
increased risk of cancers.
“The implications are very serious and
need to be addressed,” said Abdul Ghofar,
an urban and pollution specialist at The
Indonesian Forum for the Environment.
“There are environmental losses, as well
as the health losses, and of course there
I T’S THE PERFECT TI ME
TO THI NK ABOUT YOUR
RELATI ONSHI P WI TH GAMBLI NG
Look ing Back and For war d
It’s that time of year when we look back on what we
accomplished, the memories we made, the highs and
the lows of 2023. And it’s also a time we look forward
and plan for our best 2024.
Pl anning f or Change
,I\RXˉQG\RXUVHOIWKLQNLQJWKDWODVW\HDUZDVQȠWVR
great because you were spending too much time and
money on gambling, instead of making memories - then
now is a perfect time to plan for change in the new year.
Whether you just want to cut down, take a break for a
while, quit all together or simply be more mindful about
how you gamble, we have tips, tools, and resources to
help you make a plan that works for you.
YOUTH-LED ACTIVISM. Environmental activ-
ists of Situ Gede Cleanliness Warrior pick up trash at
Situ Gede lake in Bogor, West Java, Indonesia. Young
people have been at the forefront of environmental
and climate change movements in recent years: initia-
tives like school strikes for climate action, protests
at United Nations climate talks and around the world,
and local cleanups have often been youth-led.
(AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim, File)
are economic losses” because of the cost of
restoring environments.
There are alternatives to landfill or lit-
tering for some waste products: food waste
can be composted, and some other types of
waste, like certain types of plastic, can be
reused or recycled. But environmentalists
also say the world needs to make less
waste in the first place, as much of it ends
up in the landfill or in the world’s oceans.
“We should be encouraged to find out
where the source of the pollution comes
from and how to stop it,” said Ghofar. “The
term among environmentalist is to close
the tap, or turn off the tap. This pollution
will never end if the source of the pollution
is not closed.”
But as waste taps stay on, youth-led
clean-ups can still make an impact, even if
it’s just for small areas or communities. It’s
something
Trisna
Rengganis
has
witnessed in his neighborhood in Depok,
on the outskirts of Jakarta.
The group Ciliwung Depok Community
works with neighborhoods around greater
Jakarta on conservation efforts like
cleaning up rivers and riverbanks.
Rengganis, who volunteers with the
group, said that there’s a stigma toward
those who say the Ciliwung river has a
trash problem, even though many resi-
dents throw garbage into the water and
Continued on page 19