National Waste Awareness Day 2022
HPSN 2022
ecology foundation/02-27-2022
Hi Ecology Friends!
Did you know that...
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As a form of great concern for waste, Indonesia has a National Waste Awareness Day (HPSN) which is commemorated on February 21 every year. The history of the commemoration of HPSN begins to commemorate the waste avalanche incident that occurred on February 21, 2005 in Leuwigajah, Cimahi, West Java. Garbage avalanches at the Final Processing Site (TPA) in Leuwigajah were caused by high rainfall and methane gas explosions in the piles of waste at the TPA which caused 157 death tolls. As a commemoration of the incident, the State Ministry of the Environment has designated February 21 as National Waste Awareness Day.
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For your information, to commemorate HPSN in 2022, the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) through the Circular Letter of the Minister of Environment and Forestry Number: SE.1/MENLHK/PSLB3/PLB.0/1/2022 concerning National Waste Care Day 2022, the theme for the 2022 HPSN Commemoration is set, namely, “Manage Waste, Reduce Emissions, Build ProKlim (Climate Village Program)” (DLH Probolinggo, 2022). The Director General of Garbage, Waste and Hazardous Toxic Management, Rosa Vivien Ratnawati stated that this theme was launched to synergize the three main programs of the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, they are: waste management, climate change control in terms of reducing emissions in the climate village program (Proklim), and Social Forestry (Ministry of Environment and Forestry, 2022).
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In order to commemorate HPNS in the Riau Islands, the Environment and Forestry Service (DLHK) of the Riau Islands Province will further empower the Waste Bank in the midst of the people of the Riau Islands Province (RRI Tanjungpinang, 2022). The Waste Bank is indeed one of the best answers to the waste problems that occur. The waste problem in the Riau Archipelago is quite complex because the waste problem that is being faced is not only about garbage on land, but also garbage in coastal and marine areas. In Tanjungpinang itself, the pile of non-organic waste in a number of coastal areas is estimated at 3.5 meters. Of course, this problem is very disturbing coastal and marine ecosystems as well as the lives of people who live in the area.
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The head of the DLHK of the Riau Islands Province, Hendri (2022) said that the people of the Riau Islands are still not used to sorting waste and disposing of waste in its place, which causes problems downstream, namely Final Disposal Sites (TPA) which have a shorter lifespan. He added, with the Waste Bank, waste that still has value will be reused so that it can increase people's income. In addition, reuse of waste can also grow and increase community creativity to process waste into products that are more useful and have high economic value.
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We hope that the waste management programs launched to commemorate HPSN can be implemented properly and appropriately throughout Indonesia. The government must be more aggressive in educating the public about the importance of managing waste so that it can reduce the amount of national waste. In addition, the community is also expected to contribute in fighting waste and managing waste in an effective manner. Good waste management on land will reduce the level of waste disposal to the coast and sea so as to protect the land and sea environment. Waste is unavoidable, but it can be reduced in the right ways. Don't let the waste we produce backfire for our lives and future generations.
The ecology foundation, together with NGOs and the Waste BANK in the Riau Archipelago, participated in the peak day of the 2022 National Garbage Awareness Day which was held at the Tanjungpinang Regional Building, with a series of activities including an exhibition of processed waste products and the exchange of inorganic waste for government employees and the public who attended this activity. The theme for the National Waste Care Day is Manage Waste, Reduce Emissions, Build Proklim, because reducing and managing waste is our collective duty.