Power Conspiracy

“After dark, there goes light”

269 million population in Indonesia. Powered with one source of electricity, centered in Jakarta. Is it effective?

It is August 4th, 2019, around 12 P.M. Suddenly my vision went dark.
About an hour later, the most horrible thing happened, no internet.
Surely, half of Java Island got blackout.
I’ve waited for 6 hours, but still no signals.

When I woke up in the next morning,
there was electricity and internet,
and there were many “Blackout in Java Island” headline news.
Not because it’s the first time blackout in Java, but more likely because it took a very long time to re-boot the electricity system.
And resulting in many victims.
Even, Jokowi as President of Indonesia rebuked the President Director of PLN, a government-owned electricity corporation, which has just been appointed as President Director for only 2 days.

So, back to the earlier question.
Is it really effective to run a massive power system from one place?

Najwa Shihab has been discussed this topic in her Youtube channel with expertises in electrical field, along with Minister.
At one point, Tri Mumpuni – the electric woman – thought that the current power system of PLN is not effective.
It is too massive for PLN to distribute and maintain electricity in the whole Indonesia.
As you may notice, Indonesia is the world’s largest archipelago,
so if blackout happened in Kalimantan Island,
and the center of PLN is in Java Island,
it would take 2 hours in flight to get there.
Also, it costs a lot of money.

“Why there is no PLN in every provinces? It would be a lot easier to manage the electricity“, said Tri Mumpuni in discussion with Najwa Shihab.

To be honest, Indonesia has many alternatives energy resources,
for example, it is said that Indonesia has a potentially massive geothermal energy,
third largest in the world,
but only about 5% has been used for electricity.

The electricity system in Indonesia might be different from the US.
In Indonesia, every electrical power generated needs to be sold to PLN,
then PLN will distribute it to houses
while in the US, everyone in their home could generate their own electrical power, resulting in a more expensive tariff per kWh.

Monopoly and political system in Indonesia makes electricity from coal is one of a crucial economy source.
Rather than investing in geothermal powerplant for 7 years,
which is high risk in failure and expensive,
surely, investors choose coals…

But there is another renewable energy resource,
solar panel,
well, it may be expensive to invest at first,
but it is worth it,
and many “green investors” start to invest on solar panel.

If I’m an investor, I’d like to choose solar panel
rather than coal,
the non-renewable energy,
consider about GHG emission released from burning the coals,
the un-liveable land around the coal mines,
about the inhabitant’s feelings,
about the air and water quality in the area,
and think about the future..
of Indonesia.

The new capital city of Indonesia has been announced,
it is on the East Kalimantan,
and not far from there,
there are coal mines with un-liveable lands on surroundings.
It is your choice as an investor,
to choose which one will be profitable in the next 25 years.

 

References

CNN Indonesia. 2019. Jokowi: Ibu Kota Baru di Kalimantan Timur. Retrieved from CNN Indonesia: https://www.cnnindonesia.com/nasional/20190826115726-32-424625/jokowi-ibu-kota-baru-di-kalimantan-timur (31 August, 2019)

United States Energy Information Administration. 2015. Indonesia Has Significant Potential to Increase Geothermal Electricity Production. Retrieved from USEI: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=23392 (30 August, 2019).

pic source: Google

Minimalism (Part 2)

…Overeating contributes to the global food waste problem…

Food. Who doesn’t love it? From sweet to sour, healthy food to junkfood, we love them. Yes, we do love them. Yet, we often throw it away.

According to Waste4Change, almost 13 million tonnes – that’s 13 with 9 zero – of food are wasted every year in Indonesia alone. It could feed about 28 million people, the same number of hunger rates in Indonesia.

Since I live in indonesia, I see the food flow here. I think most of the food waste are coming from many events, often related with our customs.

So, as an Indonesian, I have to marry the guy that I love in order to live together.
Our culture prohibit us to live together before married,
even if we’ve already in a relationship or engaged.
Well, it’s a good culture,
teaches us to have a real commitment before deciding to live together.
On the other side, it makes us have to held a wedding ceremony,
inviting dozens and hundreds of people.
Those people need to eat, right?
And not everybody eat ‘cleanly’, some even not eating at all.

In fact, as much as 1.94 million of marriage in Indonesia was recorded in 2017.
Not just wedding, think about graduation, birthday party, lebaran, christmas, new year, etc.

Fortunately, there are some people concern about this issue.
A Blessing to Share, for example, give the leftover wedding dishes to the poorest members of society in the capital.

Brotherfood.org is also give your leftover food to the people needed the most, it works like we could share our lefover food to others through Brotherfood community.

MIT has invented a FoodCam to decrease the food waste,
while my university is also has a food junction that provide a lendable tupperware,
so if you want to borrow it, you’ll only have to
write your name and mobile number in the form.
And you should bring it back the next day (should’ve been washed).

Since it will be difficult to shift our culture,
we could contribute to the global food waste problem in some ways:

1. Don’t Over-served Food
   Over-served food are mostly happen in households,
   where we don’t estimate the amount of food needed for the amount of people,
   resulting in too much leftover food.
   Or if there’s no leftover, they will get fat and bigger,
   increasing risk in obesity, diabetes, and other complications.
   Well, overeating is also categorized as wasting food, folks.
2. Limit Your Food!
   The common problem in every ceremonies and events is too much food waste.
   While we can’t take them home, most of them will end up in landfills.
   The event’s committee needs to limit their food, for example
   using boxes in catering, or having a collab with communities.
   Also, if you’ve bought a food and it’s impossible to eat-all-clean, put it in your tupperware and continue eating at home.
3. Remember the Leftover(s)
   Yes, some of us had took away the leftover(s),
   but we often forgot to put it in a refrigerator,
   until the next day we saw it and said…
   “omo, why did I forget this thing?”
   rather than forgetting the leftover ‘accidentaly’,
   we could give it to our surroundings when going back home.
4. Check the Exp Date
   U.S. and some countries are confused by the exp date labelling, whether it’s in a canned food, cheese, noodle, etc. Some companies use ‘best before’, ‘exp date’, ‘used by’, and there’s no “one labelling for all”. That makes the society confused, rather than eat it and getting sick, they often throw it away. In this case, the government has to determine a certain labelling for all products.
5. Share It
   Last but not least, simply share it with the security officers, or the office girls, sweepers, scavengers, etc. They may need food more than you need it.

 

References

Statista. 2019. Number of Marriages in Indonesia from 2011 to 2017 (in millions). Retrieved from Statista: https://www.statista.com/statistics/705540/number-of-marriages-in-indonesia/ (23 June 2019).

Waste4Change. 2018. Three Important Facts About Food Waste That You Need to Know. Retrieved from Waste4Change: https://waste4change.com/3-important-facts-about-food-waste-that-you-need-to-know/ (23 June 2019).

Vox. 2017. Climate Lab: Food Waste Is the World’s Dumbest Problem. Link Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RlxySFrkIM&list=PLJ8cMiYb3G5fP5oq01TBp9fgh70vDDSMe&index=4

 

Minimalism (Part 1)

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.

1. 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.
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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.
6. 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)