Plastic is the best weapon to kill the world’s sustainability.
While Raditya Dika and most of books in a bookstore talking about minimalism in financial, here I’d like to talk about minimalism in lifestyle (well, yes, lifestyle also talks about financial).
Based on The Minimalists, Minimalism is where you have to live less than a hundred things, you can’t own a car, home, or a television. You can’t have a career and must start a blog, you can’t have children, and you must be the one that from a privileged background.
Well, OK.
They’re joking.
Actually, minimalism is not about any of those things, but it can help you to accomplish them, it is a tool that can assist you in finding freedom (from fear, worry, guilt). In other words,
minimalism is a tool to rid yourself of life’s excess in favor of focusing on what’s important – so you can find happiness, fulfillment, and freedom.
On April 2019, I get a chance to visit the “waste house”, Bantar Gebang. It is located in Bekasi, has been been a place for many kinds of wastes from 15 million Jakarta people everyday, with a total of 7.000 tons/day.
Not too surprising, as there are many people live in Jakarta than any other cities.
The ‘/day‘ is surprising.
If we try to calculate, a person can produce about 2.14 kg of waste per day. That is ONLY in Jakarta area. According to The Jakarta Post, the whole Indonesia is estimated to produce over 190.000 tons of waste/day, which is about 1.39 kg of waste/person/day.
Compare to China, the most populated country, with a total of 1.3 billion people produce 167.000 tons/day, China is still the winner in producing waste (about 7.78 kg waste/person/day).
But, according to the World Economic Forum,
” Indonesia is second only to China as the world’s largest contributor to the ocean plastic problem – with four of its rivers among the top 20 polluters globally. “
Plastic waste produced in Indonesia is around 25.000 tons/day. It’s not including the plastic waste imported from countries around the world (UK for example).
Take a look at this graph below from BBC.
I think of plastic as the best weapon to kill the world’s sustainability. In fact,
they have killed more than 100.000 marine animals every year.
Maybe you’d think about recycling,
but it only happens in <10% plastics in the world.
Tortoises would think a white plastic bag as a jellyfish, they can’t differ it.
Then why don’t use a degradable one?
Of course it’s better than the ordinary plastic, but still could be accidentally or naturally torn into microplastics.
What’s the deal?
The fish could eat plankton along with microplastics,
those microplastics can’t be digested,
fisherman catch the fish,
sell it,
and eaten by us,
with microplastics inside.
Yumm..
So what’s the solution? Are there any alternatives? Yes.
While San Francisco has been completely ban plastic bags in 2007, some countries try to shifting the plastic bags culture to the recycled paper bags or biodegradable ones. Many of them also put additional tax in buying paper bag, plastic, or biodegradable plastic.
Currently, Indonesia is also putting efforts to reduce the plastic usage
by applying a new regulation (additional price in using plastic bags),
shifting into biodegradable or oxodegradable plastics,
and some retails even provide cardboard boxes with no plastics at all.
Well, right now we can’t just force the plastic industries to shut down, cause it will increase the total of unemployed people in Indonesia. The oil company would also lose demand from plastic industries, where they are their second major income. Overall, we need to shift our plastic culture, and it can only be done slowly in Indonesia.
But all the regulations and additional fees are useless
if we don’t take action to be a part of the solution.
The major problem is many of us are not aware of these things.
Most of my friend think plastic is still OK to use, and they don’t care much to the environment.
I think as human, we don’t want our child to live in a non-sustainable life. As they said a hundred times, a little action is take into account.
Here’s how to be a minimalist in using plastics.
- Bring Your Own Bag
It could be a simple tote bag, a biodegradable plastic, or a paper bag. If buying a single plastic could spend US$1, you could save US$1/day when using your own bag.
I used to say ‘no, thanks’ when the clerk gave me a plastic bag, I’m using a tote bag to bring groceries, or a biodegradable plastic sometimes. - Bring Your Own Bottle Water and Food Container
The Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries in Indonesia has ever mentioned, sarcasm actually, about using a plastic bottle water in a legislative meeting.
Well, using your own bottle water could reduce your spending more than US$10/month and helping to create a sustainable world.
I also bring my own bottle water and it could save my wallet every month. - Bring Your Own Food Container
In Indonesia, it is common to use styrofoam, plastic paper, or plastic container to put the take-away food. Not only the container, the plastic cutlery is also used. Fortunately, Governor of West Java has released a regulation to not using any styrofoams as food containers, and it impacts a lot.
In other places, my university for example, provide a lendable plastic container in its Food Junction, so the students could take foods to home and bring the container back on the next day. - Use Less Straw or Bring Your Own One
Many pictures showing a tortoise get it nostril stuck by a straw get public attention. That’s when many activists and environmentalist switch to use stainless straw.
I prefer not to buy the stainless straw, but I try to not using plastic straw in restaurant.
Some companies, like ReJuve, already made their own straws from corn starch. - Track Your Plastic Footprint
In order to track your contribution to plastic waste, you’ll need a calculator, for example Plastic Pollution Calculator by Earth Day Network or Plastic Footprint Calculator by Omni Calculator.
Who knows maybe government could held a zero plastic waste competition? The winner maybe could get a certificate of appreciation and a T-shirt. - Spread the Movement
The last step is to inspire everybody to be a part of the solution. When I’m doing all of the step mentioned, I get a different happiness. While some people in other parts of the world is throwing plastics into ocean, at that point I feel like I contribute something to the earth. As one of my favorite person said,
” If you’re not a part of the solution, you’re still a part of the problem. ”
– Silvia Halim
I looked up into a mountain of waste in Bantar Gebang,
It’s pity.
As an undergraduate, I can’t blame Indonesia
or government.
It is us, the one behind those mountains of waste.
Here is the face of Jakarta,
the face of Indonesia.
…What would you do?
References (and additional articles to read)
Brooks, A. L., Wang, S. & Jambeck, J. R. 2018. The Chinese import ban and its impact on global plastic waste trade. Science Advances, 4: 1-6.
Crockett, Z. 2016. There Are 5 Trillion Pieces of Plastic Floating In Our Oceans. Retrieved from Vox: https://www.vox.com/2016/5/23/11735856/plastic-ocean (30 May 2019).
Dhanniary, A. 2019. Menteri Susi Sindir DPR Masih Saja Minum Pakai Botol Plastik. Retrieved from Viva: https://www.viva.co.id/berita/nasional/1131660-menteri-susi-sindir-dpr-masih-saja-minum-pakai-botol-plastik (30 May 2019).
Dinas Lingkungan Hidup Provinsi DKI Jakarta. 2019. Tempat Pengelolaan Sampah Terpadu Bantargebang. Retrieved from DLH: https://upst.dlh.jakarta.go.id/tpst/index (29 May 2019).
Harrabin, R. & Edgington, T. 2019. Recycling: Where Is The Plastic Waste Mountain? Retrieved from BBC: https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-46566795 (30 May 2019).
Mann, A. 2019. The Waste Challenge: Is Indonesia at A Tipping Point? Retrieved from The Jakarta Post: https://www.thejakartapost.com/academia/2019/03/01/the-waste-challenge-is-indonesia-at-a-tipping-point-1551431355.html (30 May 2019).
Millburn, J. F. & Nicodemus, R. 2019. What Is Minimalism? Retrieved from The Minimalists: https://www.theminimalists.com/minimalism/ (29 May 2019).
Strand, B. & Kerr, C. A. 2019. 10 Cities and Countries Confronting Plastic Bag Pollution Head-On. Retrieved from Earth Day Network: https://www.earthday.org/2018/04/20/10-cities-and-countries-confronting-plastic-bag-pollution-head-on/ (30 May 2019).
United States Census Bureau. 2019. U.S. Census Bureau Current Population. Retrieved from US Census Bureau: https://www.census.gov/popclock/print.php?component=counter (30 May 2019).
Whiting, K. 2019. Indonesia Has A Plan to Deal with Its Plastic Waste Problem. Retrieved from World Economic Forum: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/03/indonesia-has-a-plan-to-deal-with-its-plastic-waste-problem/ (30 May 2019).
Pic source: Google (exc. the Mountain of Waste pic)
CHILD AND THE UNIVERSE 