Plastic waste has washed into Pulau Merah Beach in Banyuwangi Regency. A sustainable waste management system is the solution.
Currently, plastic waste has washed into Pulau Merah Beach. This occasion potentially caused a loss in the tourism industry. There was a lot of plastic waste littering the beach and drove away tourists. Obviously, this was not what they expected on their holiday. How could the waste end up on the beach?
Banyuwangi’s Beaches Swamped by Plastic Waste
Beach in Banyuwangi is frequently swamped by plastic waste washed in the ocean. This phenomenon is usually called “waste season”. This season happened during the rainy season from October-February. Some beaches like Pulau Merah Beach, Blimbingsari Beach, Pulau Santen Beach, and Grand Watudodol Beach are swapped by plastic waste more often than others.
The plastic waste that is washed on the beach comes from the land that enters the river, then it flows into the ocean. It also comes from the Java Sea. KKP Research Center held research from 2015 to 2020 that figured out the movement of waste from the Java Sea into the Bali Strait. They tracked the waste moved from Muara Gembong and heading east across the Bali Strait. It happened because of the west monsoon from December to January. It caused hydrodynamics of currents moving from west to east.
Consequently, beaches in Banyuwangi that flow to the Bali Strait were swapped by plastic waste. After ending up in Banyuwangi, some of the waste moves again to Bali and pollutes the beach. That’s why in recent years, a lot of news reports about plastic waste on Bali’s beaches during the new year.
Waste Problem in Banyuwangi
The problem of plastic waste that swaps into the beach is only a small part of the big waste problem here. The government confessed that the waste management system has not run well in all parts of Banyuwangi. Ironically, every day the locals produce 1.245 tonnes of waste. Around 66% is organic waste and the rest 33% is inorganic waste dominated by plastic.
The problem is a sustainable waste management system wasn’t well implemented since it didn’t explain the implementation strategy comprehensively. The mismanagement causes waste pollution. It also affects the economy, health, and wealth loss. Moreover, the tourism sector is also affected by waste pollution. Whereas, the government now focuses on the development of the tourism sector.
So far, the government is able to manage 42% of waste only. The rest of the waste is unmanaged. Worse, 57% of waste is burned, as stated by the Environmental Service. It means many locals manage their waste conventionally. It happens because they are not provided with proper waste management facilities and knowledge.
Penanganan Sampah Selamatkan Lingkungan
To support waste management, the government has established some regulations, for example, Regional Regulation Number 2 of 2021 on the Regional Medium-Term Development of The Banyuwangi Regency in 2021-2026. The government has the obligation to improve and equalize waste management service systems and facilities.
Next, the locals need to be educated to manage their waste independently to solve this problem. Therefore, the government needs some help from various parties to get involved in the community. They need to teach locals to manage waste regularly. EcoRanger as a program of Greeneration Foundation has moved with the locals of Pancer Village to develop a sustainable waste management system and habits.
Now, EcoRanger implements a community empowerment strategy to trigger locals in sorting and managing their waste from home. EcoRanger supports the locals with waste management knowledge, facility, and recycling business model.
Waste management education is held for students, communities, and also Pulau Merah beach tourists. We hold amusing educational activities such as EcoRanger Academy, beach clean up, and envirosport. We run those events regularly, so the locals have a good understanding of the importance of preventing waste pollution.
We also provide them with waste processing centers that usually we call SEKOLA. That waste management facility was established in 2019. Here, we already process more than 800 tonnes of waste. The waste is always sorted and recycled into various products. We recycle organic waste into compost, BSF, and biogas. Whereas, we collaborate with the recycling industry to recycle plastic waste.
During the waste season, we regularly hold beach clean-up with locals to clean up the washed plastic waste that pollutes Pulau Merah Beach and other beaches around it. Therefore, tourists visit the beach conveniently. Our efforts tend to realize sustainable tourism on Pulau Merah Beach, Banyuwangi Regency.