Tackling waste with RDF: Bandung environmental agency urges waste segregation at source

The Environmental Agency (DLH) of Bandung Regency, West Java, has emphasised the importance of waste segregation at the source to support sustainable waste management, including the use of Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) processing technology. Abdul Wahid Fauzy, Head of Division at the Bandung Regency DLH, stated that sorting waste is key to resolving waste management issues, as mixed waste complicates further processing. “The biggest problem we have at DLH is that we still receive mixed waste during collection. In fact, mixed waste is our greatest enemy,” he said. He explained that waste sorted from the beginning is much easier to manage, whether for reuse or for conversion into an energy source using the technology being developed. “The RDF machine cannot possibly process mixed waste like this,” he added. He noted that waste segregation is also part of preparations for future regional waste management, including supporting the readiness of the Legok Nangka Final Processing Site, which is still in progress. “The waste needed for that purpose is actually dry inorganic waste that has been sorted from the start,” he said. Furthermore, from the total daily waste generation of around 1,600 tonnes in Bandung Regency, approximately 320 tonnes is estimated to become residue, based on DLH calculations that about 20 per cent of waste cannot be reused. “Of the existing waste, 20 per cent is definitely residue. And if that residue is managed from the beginning, it can also be utilised,” he said. He cited the example of organic waste managed through Rumah Tempa, which can be used as cover material in the waste management process at the final processing site. The Bandung Regency DLH hopes the public can build shared awareness with the government to ensure that waste leaving households has already been sorted, so the processing can run more effectively.