Through Pepeling, Hundreds of Youth Declared Their Care for the Environment Towards a Waste-Free Bandung
Hundreds of young people from a number of communities and youth and community organizations were confirmed as volunteers for Youth Care for the Environment (Pepeling) 2023 at Padepokan Mayang Seni Sunda, Thursday 23 November 2023.
The volunteers will later be tasked with assisting the waste processing program from the source using the Kang Empos and Maggotization methods.
The volunteers were confirmed by the Acting Mayor of Bandung, Bambang Tirtoyuliono, who was represented by the Head of the Youth and Sports Service, Eddy Marwoto.
Eddy said that the presence of these youth volunteers was a quick response step to find solutions and real work to deal with waste in the city of Bandung.
He acknowledged that collaboration between all stakeholders, including youth, is needed to take part together in managing waste in the city of Bandung.
"Based on data from all households, only 31 percent sort waste. We are soon reaching the end of the waste emergency period. We will not remain silent. We have to find the best solution, with our volunteers taking a role," said Eddy.
He hopes that the collaboration of all parties can immediately bring the city of Bandung out of the waste emergency period.
"We have carried out an initial kickoff in Tegalega. Later the volunteers will provide assistance, mentoring and education to the people in their area. If we do this simultaneously, God willing, we can escape the waste emergency period," he said.
Meanwhile, the Head of the Environmental Service, Dudy Prayudi, invited all relevant stakeholders to change their lifestyle by changing their mindset regarding waste from initially collecting, transporting and throwing away to collecting, processing and sorting.
Currently, 60 percent of Bandung city waste is organic waste. For this reason, it is important to process organic waste from home to village scale.
"This is the moment for us to resolve waste at the source, most importantly organic waste because its composition is at most 50-60 percent. How can we process waste in stages. Firstly, on a household scale, we can process waste independently. During the emergency period in the city of Bandung "We are preparing 20 percent of families in sub-districts to carry out Kang Empos," he said.
"On a sub-district scale, a hangar must be built for maggotization, so that organic waste is not disposed of at the TPS but is processed at the organic waste processing center in the sub-district," he added.
With the presence of volunteers, continued Dudy, it is hoped that this will encourage the community to be able to sort and manage their waste independently, starting from the source.
"In Bandung City, 272 RWs have become KBS (Trash Free Zones). This is what we want to replicate in all RWs in Bandung City. Youth who care about the environment must take action as a preventive measure. By resolving organic waste we can resolve 50-60 percent of waste," he said. (rob)**
Head of the Bandung City Communication and Information Office
Yayan A. Brilyana
