Proper garbage handling can reduce waste by half<\/p>\n
Abdul Khalik and Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology
\n(BPPT) is optimistic that Jakarta's garbage could be reduced by
\nhalf if only residents learned to process household waste
\nproperly.<\/p>\n
\"Public awareness and participation in managing their own
\nwaste would reduce the total daily waste by 50 percent, as we see
\nhere in Banjarsari,\" said Sri Bebassari, a senior researcher with
\nthe BPPT.<\/p>\n
Banjarsari is a pilot project on household waste management,
\nin Cilandak, South Jakarta. The project, which started in 1992
\ninvolves 250 families who have been successful in managing their
\nown garbage.<\/p>\n
Each family in the community processes its own garbage by
\nseparating the items that can be recycled or turned into
\nfertilizer from those which are dumped.<\/p>\n
\"We have managed to help residents in the area internalize the
\nimportance of managing their own garbage. We can produce
\nfertilizer and paper from the garbage,\" said Harini Bambang
\nWahono, one of the residents of the community and the initiator
\nof the project.<\/p>\n
She said the project was financed by UNESCO and supported by
\nmany parties including the BPPT.<\/p>\n
\"We have established communities like this in several places
\nin Indonesia and Jakarta,\" said Harini, who has won many awards
\nfor her dedication to the environment, such as the national
\nKalpataru award.<\/p>\n
BPPT also initiated another pilot project called Area Scale
\nWaste Handling in Rawasari, Central Jakarta. The project aims to
\nset an example on how to handle garbage at subdistrict level and
\ninvolves around 1,000 families.<\/p>\n
\"We can process eight to 10 tons of garbage every day here. We
\ncan also produce three tons of fertilizer from the waste to be
\nsold to the public,\" said Wahyono, another BPPT researcher.<\/p>\n
Sri underlined that it would take 10 to 15 years to apply
\nsimilar projects throughout the capital as it was more difficult
\nto raise public awareness than to apply the technology.<\/p>\n
\"For the next 15 years, the solution must be directed at
\nestablishing an integrated waste-management system. It would cost
\nRp 1 trillion (US$119 million) to develop an ideal system. But
\n(once developed the system) would last for 25 years,\" she said.<\/p>\n
According to Sri, the Bojong dump in Bogor could only
\naccommodate 1,500 tons of Jakarta's 6,000 tons of daily waste,
\nwhile the planned Duri Kosambi dump's capacity had not yet been
\nspecified.<\/p>\n
However, Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso admitted that each
\nwaste treatment facility at Bojong dump could only process 10
\ntons of waste per hour during the trial period, which began on
\nMonday.<\/p>\n
With two machines operating and one as a backup, only 480 tons
\nof waste were processed daily at the dump.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso argued that the low capacity was related to the trial
\nperiod. He claimed that the capacity would increase once the
\nmachines were fully operational.<\/p>\n
\"The machines can process up to 2,000 tons of waste per day.
\nWe'll bring more waste to the dump... Pak Selamat Limbong (the
\nhead of the City Sanitation Agency) said the dump would open
\nearly next month,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso also called on those living nearby the dump to
\nsupport its use. He suggested that the locals had previously been
\nprovoked by \"other\" parties to oppose the dump.<\/p>\n
Last month, residents protested the planned dump, saying that
\nit would cause serious environmental damage to their area. The
\nrally ended in a clash between police and residents, leaving
\nthree residents injured.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso was also confident that the dump, which will use
\nGerman technology to process the garbage, was environmentally
\nfriendly.<\/p>\n
The Bogor regency will receive an annual compensation of Rp 1
\nbillion from Jakarta for the use of its land.<\/p>\n
Since 1986, Jakarta had used the Bantar Gebang dump in Bekasi,
\nbut it closed down the dump earlier this month after a dispute
\nwith Bekasi. Currently the capital's garbage is being dumped on
\nswampy land in Cilincing subdistrict and open land in Rorotan
\nsubdistrict, both are in North Jakarta.<\/p>",
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