Recycle Party Wins Neighborhood's Vote

From the massive billboard looming over the Pengubengan Kauh banjar (traditional neighborhood organization) community center in Denpasar, one might think that another political party has been added to the existing 36 in Bali.

Splashed across the billboard for the Partai Daur Ulang (literally: Recycle Party) or PDU, is the slogan: "Cleanliness and Health are the right and obligation of everyone. Join me and keep Pengubengan Kauh clean by recycling."

The man pictured on the banner - standing in the tough-man-power pose so common among legislative candidates - is the Recycle Party's founder, Wayan Budiasa or Alex.

An environmentalist party in Indonesia? Well, not really.

"The billboard is just to grab attention," Alex said.

"Bali has a major waste problem. There has never been proper waste management program on the island."

Partai Daur Ulang is the official name, agreed upon by the residents of Pengubengan Kauh, of a recently launched, community-driven recycling program in the area.

Beginning this month, 125 families will separate their household waste into organic and nonorganic, using bins they have provided themselves.

"The residents have been asked to sort out their own trash," said I Nengah Suwirya, the chief of Banjar Pengubengan Kauh.

"Things that can be recycled will be turned into fertilizer and recycled paper."

The separated waste will then be managed by Alex and his friend Made Sueca.

Once every two weeks, Alex will pick up the trash from the residents' homes and take it for resorting. Nonrecyclable trash will be thrown into the Suwung central dumping site in southern Denpasar.

"The PDU is not a joke," Alex said. "We want to make sure that waste is handled professionally by the residents."

Alex formed the PDU because of his concerns about Bali's waste problem. He then established a partnership with the Wisnu foundation, an environmental NGO located in Pengubengan Kauh.

For years, Wisnu has pioneered programs aimed at creating community-based waste management systems across Bali. The foundation is now supervising and advising Alex's program.

Alex said the program was still at the testing and analysis stage; the volume of trash produced by the area is being studied. This information will then be used to benchmark how much he will charge the residents.

The program should be self-sufficient by February.

Made Puriati, an environmental activist from the Wisnu foundation, which advocates community-run waste management, praised Alex's effort.

"This is a good implementation of *the law* on waste management," Puriati said.

"Pengubengan Kauh can be independent and even make a profit from managing their own waste."

According to data from the Wisnu foundation, residents of Denpasar and Badung alone produce 800 cubic meters of trash everyday, not counting industrial waste.

"This is equal to a stack of trash eight acres in area and one meter high," she said.

The two areas are struggling to handle the illegal dumping of trash across their nooks and crannies.

Meanwhile, as part of a renewed environmental effort, the Bali government has begun operating a power plant that runs on waste residue in Suwung.

The Jakarta Post, Thu 01/22/2009

Luh De Suryani, Contributor, Denpasar

Barang Bekas, Bekas Harga

Alex, anak muda berusia 20 tahun itu datang dan langsung duduk pada bingkai jendela yang terbuka sambil merokok. Diam merenung memandang tanaman padi somali yang bergoyang ditiup angin. Beberapa detik, dan tiba-tiba berkata, "Kenken ye, jani harga tuun. Rugi cang no'."

Berbeda dengan anak muda pada umumnya, Alex tidak mau bekerja di satu tempat, menjadi tenaga kerja yang selalu diperintah oleh atasannya. Sejak dulu, dan saat ini sudah dibuktikannya, ia ingin menjadi pengusaha dan pekerja mandiri. Maka sampah dipilihnya sebagai satu peluang kerja yang dianggap menjanjikan.

Dimulai sekitar delapan bulan yang lalu. Alex, pemuda Pengubengan yang mengaku tidak suka sekolah itu datang ke Wisnu. Sampai muncul kesepakatan bahwa Alex akan memanfaatkan dan mengelola mobil pick up milik Wisnu untuk menjalankan usaha daur ulangnya. Segala sesuatu indah pada waktuNya! Selama beberapa bulan mobil itu tidak termanfaatkan secara optimal karena tidak ada lagi yang menjadi staf tetap pengelola sampah di Wisnu.

Usaha yang dijalankan Alex berjalan lancar, sampai kemudian muncul ide untuk mengelola sampah banjar dan membangun tempat khusus untuk pengomposan dan pemilahan sampah. Pengalaman pertama. Proyek yang tadinya diperkirakan hanya menghabiskan dana 3,5 juta, ternyata sudah hampir mencapai 6 juta belum juga selesai ... dan Alex tetap semangat!

Minggu ini dianggapnya sebagai satu masalah berusaha yang harus dihadapi, ketika harga barang bekas merosot tajam. Ternyata menurut beberapa berita yang bisa diakses melalui koneksi internet, harga barang bekas sudah mulai turun menjelang lebaran. Perbandingan harga tiga bulan yang lalu dengan minggu ini sangat berbeda:

Menurut informasi dari para pengepul barang bekas, penurunan tersebut disebabkan karena semakin banyaknya barang bekas yang diimpor dari luar negeri. Ternyata bukan sekedar penurunan harga atau dampak dari krisis ekonomi global, melainkan terkait dengan kebijakan pemerintah atas kebepihakannya pada masyarakatnya. Satu hal yang membuat Alex terkejut, untuk apa Indonesia mengimpor kondom bekas?