Nusa Penida: From Garbage to Coconut Tree
The Nusa Penida Ecological Program supported by GEF SGP was implemented in 2018-2022 to Improve the Socio-Cultural – Ecological Resilience of Communities in Facing the Pressures of Globalization on the Small Island of Nusa Penida. At that time, the Wisnu Foundation worked with local partners, both Local Organizations and Community Groups who had the capacity to develop programs and had expertise in their fields. There were twelve local partners involved, one of which was PPLH Bali which was engaged in environmental education, especially waste management.
The activity carried out was waste management in Banjar Nyuh, together with the Taksu Tridatu Foundation, starting with research on the amount and type of waste. Furthermore, the Banjar Nyuh community received waste sorting training, and the waste collected was waste that had been sorted into organic, inorganic, and residue. Organic waste was processed into compost, inorganic waste was sorted again based on type, and the residue was disposed of at the TPA (Government Waste Disposal Site). At that time, only around 20% of the total waste collected was disposed of at the TPA (Government Waste Disposal Site).
Unfortunately, this is no longer done, the waste is immediately taken and disposed of at the Biaung Nusa Penida TPA. The condition of the TPA is almost full, so waste disposal can only be done until 12 noon. Not to mention, currently only a few types of waste can be taken for recycling, such as iron and aluminum cans. Meanwhile, no one wants to buy plastic bottles, even when given for free. One of the reasons is the high transportation costs, which cannot be covered by the selling price of the goods.
When the Ecological Program was first implemented, the number of tourists visiting Nusa Penida was still around 1,000 people per day. Then, currently, the average number of tourist visits has reached 5,000 people per day. Meanwhile, the existing accommodation will provide at least one bottle of mineral water to guests who stay. So, there will be at least 5,000 bottles of drinking water that need to be disposed of every day. Not to mention other types of waste.
This condition causes concern, as felt by Mrs. Ketut from Banjar Nyuh, “We don’t want our beautiful island to be buried by garbage.” This was said by Mrs. Ketut in the Discussion meeting of the Draft Regulation of Ped Village on Waste Management on September 3, 2024. This activity is a collaboration between the Wisnu Foundation and the Faculty of Law, University of Indonesia. This draft is expected to be the first step in efforts to make Ped Village a village that manages its waste in an integrated manner, especially because the Biaung TPA is located in the Ped Village area.
In addition, traffic congestion has also increased in line with the increasing amount of waste and the number of tourist visits to Nusa Penida. Congestion mainly occurs around the Banjar Nyuh port. Currently, there are at least 20 fast boat arrivals/departures from Sanur, starting from around 8 am to 3 pm, where some passengers are picked up/dropped off by car. The longest congestion occurs around the gas station. The queue of cars from the north of the gas station reaches more than one kilometer.
Another interesting thing is the concern of Mr. Mangku from Banjar Nyuh about the availability of janur (young coconut leaves), especially to fulfill the needs of banten (offering) and ceremonies. This banjar is called Banjar Nyuh because most of the area used to be covered with coconut trees. However, since eight years ago, many trees have been cut down, turning into concrete buildings. Coconut plantations have changed function to become lodgings, villas, or restaurants. In the next ten years, who knows how much janur will cost, because it will definitely be imported from Bali, even from outside Bali.
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