Saying no to plastic garbage

It requires no less than 240 years to eliminate plastic garbage from the soil.

For Bali, plastic garbage is a huge problem as it spreads all over the island, especially in several favorite tourist destinations like Kuta, Sanur, Nusa Dua and other tourist areas.

To arouse people's awareness on the importance of cleaning up the island from plastic litters, the Denpasar mayoralty office launched a special campaign called Gerakan Peduli Sampah Plastic (No to Plastic Garbage) involving NGOs, businessmen, school students, traditional village or banjar communities and expatriate communities.

Started by Denpasar Mayor A.A. Puspayoga on Saturday, Feb. 19, the campaign was also supported by the Bhakti Bumi Bali Foundation.

"This is only a starting point to remind people of the danger of littering plastic wraps, bottles, and other plastic products. It is very bad to the environment and it makes Denpasar and other places on Bali look so dirty and ugly," the mayor said.

Honorary Consul of France Raphael Devianne added that Bali must be clean. Good sanitation and surrounding would attract more visitors to the island.

In the first stage of the campaign, the mayoralty and the initiators would invite schools around the city to take part in it. Every Saturday, school students would be required to collect plastic garbage from their neighborhood homes and schools. In the next step, members of Banjar communities would follow soon.

"It is expected that the entire Bali population will have the understanding on the urgency of the campaign and is invited to fully participate in it to create a clean and healthy Bali," Pande Nyoman Yoga, the foundation's chairman added. -- JP