Plastic Bottle Drop Box Assistance in RW 07, Johar Baru
Partner: Paljaya
Industry: Wastewater Management
Objective: The Plastic Bottle Drop Box Assistance Program aims to increase public awareness and active participation in plastic waste management by providing easily accessible drop box facilities in the neighborhood. It is also a concrete step towards building a new habit of responsibly sorting and recycling used plastic bottles to reduce their negative impact on the environment.
Challenges:
- Low Public Awareness and Participation: Lack of maximum socialization regarding the program’s benefits and participation procedures means the public is not yet fully aware.
- Unclear Recycling Chain: The absence of recycling partners ready to accept the plastic bottles.
- Regular Emptying of Drop Boxes: Ensuring drop boxes are emptied routinely to prevent overflow and becoming a new source of litter.
Solutions:
- Continuous Education and Socialization
Building new habits in waste management requires a continuous approach involving the entire community. The strategy involves holding interactive, regular workshops and socializations, focusing on practical understanding of waste sorting and recycling. The key to this program’s success is the involvement of environmental cadres from local residents. By making them cleanliness ambassadors, information is not only delivered top-down but also disseminated by trusted community figures. This “by the people, for the people” approach is expected to create a domino effect, where knowledge and good practices spread naturally, thus ensuring the program’s long-term sustainability. - Development of Collection and Pick-up System
To maximize the impact of this plastic bottle collection effort, collaboration with competent parties is essential. By establishing solid partnerships with waste banks or recycling companies, a routine system for picking up plastic bottles from the drop box locations can be created. A regular collection schedule needs to be arranged to prevent pile-up, ensuring the bottles do not sit idle for too long and can be immediately processed into valuable new raw materials. - Incentives for Residents
To further encourage resident participation, the Kelurahan Government will launch a reward or incentive program for residents who regularly and actively use the waste drop boxes. The incentives vary, from “waste savings” that can be exchanged for basic necessities, to shopping vouchers at local stalls and stores. Furthermore, to foster a spirit of mutual cooperation, a periodic cleanliness competition between neighborhood units (RT) will be held. The RT that demonstrates the highest participation rate and cleanest environment will receive awards and appreciation. In this way, environmental cleanliness becomes not just an obligation, but also an enjoyable and beneficial activity.
Impact:
- This program can serve as a real example of positive collaboration between a business entity (Paljaya) and a community of residents.
- Success in jointly managing the drop boxes can strengthen the sense of community and mutual cooperation among the residents of RW 07.
- The availability of specially provided facilities encourages a culture of discipline in waste disposal. Residents find it easier to participate in maintaining cleanliness because the infrastructure is close to them.
- The drop box provides a specific and permanent place for disposing of (this type of) waste, reducing the habit of littering.
SDGs Relevance:
- SDGs 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
A simple yet high-impact initiative like providing drop boxes and waste sorting education at the neighborhood level is not merely a cleanliness action. This step is a real and practical implementation of the principles of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This program proves that solutions to global problems often start with local action.
Be Part of the Solution! Support the Movement to Sort Plastic Waste from Home.
Through the Plastic Bottle Drop Box Program, we have helped the community in RW 07, Johar Baru, Central Jakarta, to be more environmentally conscious by facilitating the sorting and recycling of plastic bottle waste.