The youths go out on the water in little boats known as kayaks. They steer the kayaks towards garbage that is floating. They load the rubbish onto their boats after removing it from the water. All of the trash is inspected and dealt with later, on land.
The number of kids involved in the campaign against pollution is about 20, although it started with only one guy. Giri Marhara made the decision to begin lake cleanup ten years ago. At the age of sixteen, he developed a propensity of tidying up his surroundings. In recent years, environmental and climate change campaigns have been led by young individuals like Marhara. Younger people in Indonesia have shown support and interest for the small-scale campaigns that have been running.
Marhara remarked, “Cleaning is refreshing and catharsis for me.” He reported that kids playing in the area would frequently ask if they might assist him in cleaning up the lake. The lake inspired the name of the group they founded the previous year: Situ Gede Cleanliness Warrior. They pick up rubbish, boat across the lake, and determine what may be recycled. Over 2,700 kg of rubbish had been gathered by Marhara and his companions from the Situ Gede lake area.
There is a severe rubbish problem in Indonesia. According to the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, the nation generated over 35 million tons of rubbish in the previous year. According to estimates, 35% of the waste in the nation is not properly managed. Roadsides, rivers, and natural areas frequently have trash lying around.
According to the World Resources Institute, waste also contributes around 3% of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. That is mostly caused by food waste. Food waste can release methane when it breaks down in a landfill. The gas, which is around 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide, warms the earth. Health issues have been brought up by the trash problem. For instance, plastic waste breaks down into tiny fragments called microplastics, which can enter the body. Research indicates that it may cause harm to the immune, neurological, and endocrine systems as well as raise the risk of cancer.
For certain waste products, there are alternatives to landfills or littering; food waste, for instance, can be composted. Certain waste materials, such as specific kinds of plastic, have recyclable or reusable qualities. Yet environmentalists also assert that global action is required. Youth-led clean ups, however, can still have an influence on waste, even if they are limited to specific regions or communities. Marhara asserted that the nation has a “littering culture” and that in order for there to be long-lasting change, “behavior that is causing trash to be out there in the environment” must halt.
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