JAKARTA — The widespread use of plastic materials makes plastic waste continue growing. The price is cheap, easy to find, and used as if making our lives inseparable from plastic bags. Based on Indonesia’s domestic waste statistics, the type of plastic waste itself is ranked second, 5.4 tons/year or 14% of the total waste production in Indonesia.
In a public discussion entitled “The Role of Sacrifice for Community Welfare & Nature Sustainability” on Wednesday (21/06/2023) at Kopi Ko Acung Sabang, Central Jakarta, Dompet Dhuafa tried to discuss the issue of plastic waste further by inviting resource person Ujang Solihin Sidik as Head of Sub-Directorate of Producer Management of the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK).
Since 2021, Dompet Dhuafa has officially strived to protect the environment together with the Ministry of Environment and Forestry. Especially during the moment of Eid al-Adha through the movement “Kurban Asik Without Plastic Waste.” This campaign was echoed during the Sacrificial Animal Stocking Program (THK) to replace single-use plastics with more environmentally friendly packaging or with packaging that follows the local wisdom of the local community.
Baca juga: Wujud Sayangi Bumi, DD Volunteer Gemakan Kurban Asik Tanpa Sampah Plastik
Prima Hadi Putra, Director of Communication, Technology and Governance of Dompet Dhuafa, also further conveyed this campaign in his remarks at a public discussion last Wednesday (21/6/23).
“For the last three years, Dompet Dhuafa has collaborated with the Ministry of Environment and Forestry regarding how the Sacrificial Animal Stocking Program continues to preserve the environment, which is what we often echo with the tagline Qurban Asik Without Plastic Bags. This movement also emerged from a lot of local wisdom to package your sacrificial meat. This movement is also one of our efforts to revitalize sacrifice and make Eid al-Adha a holiday truly enjoyed by all,” said Putra.
In the discussion, Ujang Solihin Sidik, as Head of the Sub-Directorate of Producer Management of the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, also explained that there would be a potential accumulation of plastic waste now of Eid al-Adha 1444 H. The estimated amount of sacrificial animal consumption this year, according to MoEF data, is around 1.7 million sacrificial animals. Therefore, if people still use a lot of plastic bags, it is estimated to produce as many as 119 million pieces of plastic bag waste.
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“Based on the data, 1.7 million sacrificial animals are potentially distributed this year. If calculated, 1 kg distributed or per plastic is estimated to bring up 119 million pieces of crackle bags that will become waste. If there is no effort to reduce plastic waste, imagine it will continue to increase yearly, “explained Ujang.
Furthermore, Ujang explained that establishing this good collaboration gave birth to innovations from the surrounding community during the distribution of sacrificial meat.
“Three years ago, we were delighted to collaborate with Dompet Dhuafa through this movement because, through this movement, there is an innovation for the community, namely emerging containers that are following the local wisdom of the region. Some use teak leaves, banana leaves, coconut leaves, and various kinds. Some even receive sacrificial meat coupons, asked to bring their containers,” he explained.
Baca juga: Dompet Dhuafa Ajak Masyarakat Melek Lingkungan Lewat Kontes Foto Solusi Polusi Plastik
Based on the 2022 report, 81 districts or cities report the results of Eid al-Adha activities without plastic bags. In addition, as many as 600 thousand pieces of plastic bags have been avoided as waste through this campaign. Therefore, in addition to wanting to reduce the impact of plastic waste, it is also part of social engineering to change the behaviour of our society.
Aliyah Sayuti, a Volunteer Specialist at Dompet Dhuafa, also shared her experience distributing sacrificial animals with Dompet Dhuafa in 2019. She travelled a complicated way to reach the distribution location point. In addition, she also said that local people do not use plastic when distributing sacrificial meat but use banana leaves.
“In 2019, we also distributed sacrificial meat using banana leaves in the context of greening (protecting the environment). So the leaves are cut into pieces and become a base for distributing meat,” Aliyah admitted.
In connection with this effort to protect the environment, Dompet Dhuafa Volunteer held a competition, “Kurban Asik Without Plastic Waste”, ahead of the momentum of Stocking Sacrificial Animals 2023. This competition is carried out to appreciate anyone involved in the kindness movement. The competition is in photos and videos from June 21-28, 2022. Of course, the applicable terms and conditions are explained in full on the official DD Volunteer website. (Dompet Dhuafa/Awalia Ramadhani)