3,150 views Work Together to Overcome the Waste Problem in the Jakarta Bay - KEHATI KEHATI

Work Together to Overcome the Waste Problem in the Jakarta Bay



  • Date:
    30 Apr 2020
  • Author:
    KEHATI

DATE: 21 Mar 2018

AUTHOR: KEHATI

 

Contamination of plastic waste in the waters of Jakarta Bay is increasingly acute. A comprehensive breakthrough is needed to overcome this problem so that it does not become an ecological disaster time bomb in the future.

 

“It’s been a long time the waste problem in the Jakarta Bay has been a polemic. However, there was never been a solution. In fact, every second, the pile of garbage is increasing. This breakthrough must be immediately sought so that it does not get worse,” said Executive Director of the Indonesian Biodiversity Foundation (KEHATI), M.S. Sembiring in Jakarta, Thursday (8/3).

 

Related to the waste problem in the Jakarta Bay, the Save Our Small Islands Consortium (SOSIS), a consortium initiated by the KEHATI Foundation, held a panel discussion with the theme “Answering the Challenge: Jakarta Bay is Clean, Who Dares?” Last Thursday, at the JCC Main Hall Senayan, Jakarta. The discussion included speakers including the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Susi Pudjiastuti, Deputy Governor of DKI Jakarta Sandiaga Uno, Head of Corporate Sustainability of PT Bank HSBC, and M.S. Sembiring

 

Plastic waste, continued Sembiring, caused tremendous damage to the balance of the marine and coastal ecosystems. In addition to polluting the oceans, plastic waste can poison marine life, damage coral reefs, and be harmful to human life.

 

The rubbish that was washed away in Jakarta Bay was rubbish that was washed away from land and rivers. The rubbish also includes the remaining uncontrolled waste from around a total of 6,500-7,000 tons of garbage per day produced from the citizens of Jakarta and surrounding areas.

 

On the same occasion, the KEHATI mentor, Prof. Emil Salim said that the Jakarta Bay problem was not a reclamation problem, but a public awareness to maintain cleanliness. There are 3 important points to overcome floods in Jakarta, which are building offshore reservoirs, cleaning 13 rivers that flow in Jakarta, and managing waste in Jakarta.

 

70% by 2025

 

Expert Staff for the Ecology and Sea Resources of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Aryo Hanggono said that President Joko Widodo has given his commitment on behalf of the Indonesian government, that Indonesia will reduce waste through the 3R (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) program by 30% and the reduction of plastic waste in the sea ​​by 70% in 2025.

 

Aryo added, to achieve this commitment, several steps had been carried out.

 

First, so far we have drafted Perpres No. 97 of 2017 concerning National Policies and Strategies for Managing Household Waste and Similar Waste. Second, a draft of Presidential Regulation on the National Action Plan for the Management of Plastic Waste in the Sea is currently being drafted for 2017-2025.

 

So, what we are doing is the first step towards achieving the target by 2025 to reduce waste at sea by around 70%. We also hope that what we are currently doing can become a bridge for the central government and the provincial or regional government, “said Aryo.

 

As one of the main speakers at this panel discussion, DKI Jakarta Deputy Governor Sandiaga Uno said that Jakarta Bay and the Thousand Islands must be clean. If it is taken care of then it becomes a blessing. If not managed properly it will be a disaster.

 

“If we trace back the recent viral news about rubbish in Bali, not in Jakarta. But I am sure the situation will not be much different. I have been diving and snorkelling and see that there is a problem, it is still beautiful but I am sure it can be more beautiful, “said Sandiaga.

 

DKI Government, continued Sandiaga, has emphasized that waste is a shared problem. Therefore, his office has embraced various groups to help the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government overcome the problem of waste in the Jakarta Bay and the Thousand Islands.

 

Referring to existing data, DKI Jakarta produces 7,000 tons of waste per day, including in the Thousand Islands. The amount is quite extraordinary because it is equivalent to 4% of national waste production.

 

“At this time, we are starting to re-organize the system slowly to overcome the waste problem in Jakarta, but we cannot work alone. Therefore, we are currently trying to partner with all sectors, you can’t have silo mentality. We have to cross platforms, from the private sector, NGOs, the community and the provincial government, “said Sandi.

 

Waste management approaches in the Jakarta Bay have been relatively good, but they are still dominated by the bureaucratic approach. In the future, the DKI Provincial Government hopes to strengthen the community-based or non-bureaucratic approach.

 

Sandiaga hopes that the CSR program is not only a program but can be a social investment. Like the KEHATI activities with the communities on Bokor Island, the zero-waste program that has been running.

 

“Examples like this will be the main thing, which we will encourage in the future, especially community participation,” he added.

 

There are three focuses taken by the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government to overcome the Jakarta Bay waste problem: collaboration, education and action. Solid steps in the near future, to tackle Jakarta Bay waste, the Provincial Government will use the 4P concept (public, private, people, partnership) and want to involve civil society to work together.

 

The Provincial Government hopes that in the future it will be able to walk together to solve the problems of the Jakarta Bay waste. Apart from the community, cooperation with neighbouring municipalities and regencies, such as Bekasi and Tangerang cities and river division such as the provincial government and the Ministry of Public Works (PU).

 

There are still many people who do not know that the authorities who is managing 13 rivers that flow in Jakarta are the Ministry of Public Works and the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (KKP).

 

Then, education to the residents. Not only residents of the Thousand Islands but also residents on the Jakarta mainland. How to apply lifestyle that can pay more attention to waste management.

 

“The Jakarta Bay waste problem is a very large task. We have only been able to take over the management of waste in the last three years, because in the past we learned that there is a “garbage mafia”, such as the temporary garbage dump (TPS),” said Sandiaga.

 

Last is action. The Thousand Islands is one of the tourism destinations declared by the Ministry of Tourism, so there should be an acceleration to overcome the problem of waste in the Jakarta Bay.

 

Based on data from the Directorate General of Pollution and Environmental Damage Control at the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) in 2016, the majority of pollution in the Jakarta Bay area is sourced from domestic household waste. This is because the area is the final downstream for various types of waste distribution coming from upstream 13 rivers in the region. Therefore, even the highest level of pollution accumulates in the downstream which end directly to the sea.

 

The source of pollution is divided into two, namely point-sources (industrial waste) whose sources are fixed and non-point sources (household domestic waste) whose sources come from anywhere. The level of pollution originating from point sources is divided into two, pollution from organic waste is 52,862.75 and inorganic waste is 24,446.06. As for non-point sources waste, for organic matter is 10,875,651.69 and inorganic 9,766,670.00. This pile of waste is calculated in tonnes and carried out in northern Jakarta in November 2015.

 

Meanwhile, the KEHATI Coastal and Small Island Ecosystem Program Manager, Basuki Rahmad, added, the academics, the community, the government, and non-governmental organizations must unite to find facts, overcome problems, and develop joint solutions in dealing with plastic waste problems in the Jakarta Bay.

 

“This is an issue whose scale and impact are huge. Delaying its completion will only create a time bomb for the near future. This will be the beginning of a tragedy. This is our common challenge, in which to overcome them there must be involvement of all parties. They have to interact with each other and start talking together, “said Basuki.

 

The discussion initiated by SOSIS today is expected to be the starting point for all parties to solve the waste problem in Jakarta Bay to start sitting together. From this discussion, hopefully the joint efforts will continue to roll, which will lead to a comprehensive policy breakthrough to overcome the problem

 

The SOSIS Consortium is a grass root movement that collaborates in dealing with problems faced by small islands. By synergizing the roles of government, private sector, academics and non-governmental organizations, SOSIS intends to be a solution through the four pillars of activities, namely: education, coral rehabilitation, waste management system, and ecotourism.