Bali drowning in rubbish after landfill closed<\/p>\n
Bali\u2019s largest landfill was declared off-limits for organic waste\nfrom the beginning of April, as the government moves to enforce a\nlongstanding ban on open tips.<\/p>\n
JAKARTA: Buckets of blooms adorn Yuvita Anggi Prinanda\u2019s sidewalk\nflower stall in Bali, but their perfume can\u2019t mask the stench of\naccumulating rubbish bespoiling parts of the resort island famed for its\nnatural beauty.<\/p>\n
Bali\u2019s largest landfill was declared off-limits for organic waste\nfrom the beginning of April, as the government moves to enforce a\nlongstanding ban on open tips.<\/p>\n
But with no immediate alternatives provided, rubbish is piling up in\nthe streets and attracting rats, or being set alight by frustrated\nresidents, causing acrid smoke that has prompted health concerns.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a business owner, this is a real nuisance,\u201d Yuvita told AFP.<\/p>\n
She has dipped into her meagre profits to pay a private company to\nremove the rubbish from near her stall.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome customers, perhaps bothered by the smell, ended up not making a\npurchase,\u201d the 34-year-old told AFP.<\/p>\n
Her shop alone generates about four large black bags full of waste\nevery day, mostly leaves and flower cuttings - adding to the island\u2019s\nestimated 3,400 tonnes of daily garbage output.<\/p>\n
On paper, Indonesia has banned open landfills since 2013, but it is\nonly now attempting to fully implement the measure.<\/p>\n
\u201cNOT A GOOD LOOK\u201d<\/p>\n
At Kuta beach, a popular tourist spot regularly inundated with\nplastic debris that washes ashore, rubbish bags are piled up waist-high\nin a parking lot.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have many rats here at nighttime. The smell is not very good \u2026\nit\u2019s not a good look,\u201d said Australian visitor Justin Butcher.<\/p>\n
Around 7 million tourists visited Bali last year, vastly outstripping\nthe island\u2019s native population of around 4.4 million, and contributing\nto Bali\u2019s waste output.<\/p>\n
People caught dumping or burning rubbish risk up to three months\u2019\njail time and a 50 million rupiah (nearly $3,000) fine, according to I\nDewa Nyoman Rai Dharmadi, the head of Bali\u2019s public order agency, but\nmany feel they have no other choice.<\/p>\n
On Apr 16, hundreds of sanitation workers drove waste-filled trucks\nto the governor\u2019s office in protest.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we don\u2019t collect our client\u2019s rubbish, we are in the wrong, if we\ncollect it, where do we dispose it?\u201d said protester I Wayan Tedi\nBrahmana.<\/p>\n
In response, the local government said it would allow limited\ndisposal of waste at Suwung as a temporary measure until the end of\nJuly.<\/p>\n
But from August, the government has vowed to end all open landfills\nnationwide, though it is unclear what alternatives will be in place by\nthen.<\/p>\n
\u201cPEOPLE NEED GUIDANCE\u201d<\/p>\n
Nur Azizah, a waste management expert at Gadjah Mada University, told\nAFP the Suwung landfill received about 1,000 tonnes of waste per day and\nhas been over capacity for years.<\/p>\n
Up to 70 per cent is organic waste that \u201cis dangerous because over\ntime it generates methane, which could explode and cause\nlandslides\u201d.<\/p>\n
This has happened several times, including a March collapse at\nIndonesia\u2019s largest landfill outside Jakarta that buried trucks and food\nstalls, killing seven people.<\/p>\n
Nur said the only long-term solution was a mass campaign to educate\npeople on managing organic waste, mainly through composting.<\/p>\n
Yuvita agreed.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople need guidance. It\u2019s like when someone cannot swim, they\nshouldn\u2019t be told to jump right in,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The head of Denpasar\u2019s environment and forestry agency Ida Bagus\nWirabawa told AFP the government has been running awareness campaigns\nsince last year, and handing out composting containers.<\/p>\n
Indonesia\u2019s 284 million people produce more than 40 million tonnes of\nrubbish per year, nearly 40 per cent of it food waste and nearly a fifth\nplastic, according to the environment ministry.<\/p>\n
Only about a third gets \u201cmanaged\u201d, meaning recycled or processed,\naccording to Nur.<\/p>\n
The rest ends up in nature.<\/p>\n
Fewer than a third of the country\u2019s 485 landfills have shuttered\nsince the ban on open dumping came into force on paper about 13 years\nago.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have not been managing waste properly, resulting in an emergency\nin all cities and regencies,\u201d then-environment minister Hanif Faisol\nNurofiq told reporters recently. He has since been replaced.<\/p>\n
The government aims to break ground on several waste-to-energy\nprojects in June, including one in Bali that could process about 1,200\ntonnes of waste daily, but these could take years to come online.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/bali-drowning-in-rubbish-after-landfill-closed-1777530556", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }