Behind the veil of its idyllic beaches, Bali hides a chronic waste problem.

The average person in Bali contributes 2.8 kilograms of potentially harmful solid waste per day to the island’s rubbish pile, more than twice as much as the average person in the country’s capital Jakarta and considerably more than the national average.

Every day, 15,000 cubic meters of trash is disposed of along the island’s roadsides and at illegal dumpsites, enough to completely fill six Olympic-sized swimming pools.

The population of the island continues to grow at a rapid rate, having reached 4.2 million people by 2014, but quality waste management practices appear to be lacking. It can come as no surprise that such a staggering amount of waste has resulted in serious problems.

According to ROLE Foundation — an NGO involved in environmental sustainability — up to 75 percent of waste in Bali is left uncollected due to a lack of official collection services. Instead the waste pollutes local waterways, farms and coastal areas.

Real issue: Dreamland Beach, one of the most popular beaches in southern Bali, is plagued with a trash problem.

“Rivers and mangrove swamps have become makeshift rubbish dumps due to poor government regulation and illegal dumping, frequented by local businessman looking to avoid the cost of transporting waste for proper disposal at government landfills or processing facilities,” said Michael O’Leary, the CEO and founder of ROLE Foundation.

“Human effluence and contaminated cooking oil from food stalls flows directly into the same ocean that the millions of tourists frolic. This definitely does not sound like the Bali that people would like to live in or visit for a holiday”.

Aiming to tackle this issue head on, the foundation recently launched “Zero Waste to Oceans”, a program that aims to help preserve the natural beauty of Bali for future generations.

“We promote a complete circle approach to waste management, in which every last piece of trash is recycled and absolutely nothing goes to waste,” O’Leary said.

ROLE is currently designing a Zero Waste to Oceans Education and Demonstration Center, where schools, hotels and local businesses will be able to learn sustainable techniques to manage and or reuse waste.

He voiced hope that the center would serve as an innovative way to educate local people, with local experts and teachers on hand to explain specifics.

Designed and built with the specialized assistance and expertise of local organizations and NGOs, the center will give all types of trash equal consideration and care.

From the separation of organic and non-organic trash to the conversion of plastics into oil or biodegradables into compost, visitors to the center will be able to learn how simple responsible waste management can be.

“With our help, hotels and local businesses will be able to make positive changes in the way they and their communities deal with waste. Children will also grow up to understand the value of proper waste management,” O’Leary said.

With construction of the center underway, the foundation has organized to host a crowd funding event, through its upcoming annual event Waterman’s Week, to raise money to build and or purchase machinery, equipment and tools. The foundation aims to raise US$50,000 through various events during the week — ranging from beach clean ups and art contests to drum circles and pool parties.

Caring about Bali’s ocean means taking care of coral reef and the entire marine ecosystem. In the spirit of celebrating World Ocean Day and Coral Triangle Day, the Coral Triangle Center (CTC) held Adopt a Coral program and an Underwater Clean Up Dive in Sanur last week.

Located in the heart of the Coral Triangle, Bali boasts abundant marine resources and incredible underwater creatures thrive on its coastlines, reefs and surrounding deep seas.

Its waters support the livelihood of millions — providing bounties of food and valuable commodities and its scenic beaches and amazing underwater views attract millions of tourists each year.

However, just like many other areas in Indonesia, a recent rise in sea temperature has resulted in coral bleaching. If the impact is severe, it may cause the coral to die.

Aware of this major threat, CTC hosted Coral Watch to monitor the health of coral reef in the vicinity of the island.

As part of the campaign to educate the younger generation, CTC also organized “Trash Art Competition” for students, highlighting creative ways to reduce and re-use waste products, so that waste does not end up in the ocean.

Waste that is not disposed properly often gets washed out to sea, endangering the life of marine creatures.

“By focusing on educating both this generation and the next, we believe that we can help to effect real change on the island: completely changing people’s mindset and perceptions of waste,” O’Leary said.

— Photos Courtesy of ROLE Foundation and Coral Triangle Center (CTC)

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