Trinseo’s Let’s Do Recycling! Program, a plastic recycling advocacy and education initiative in Indonesia, continues to present solutions and boost the awareness of waste management through collaborations with partners and stakeholders. A hybrid seminar, “Managing Marine Waste to Realize Sustainable Tourism” was held in Bali on December 10, 2022 to provide waste handling solutions particularly for Bali, which currently focuses on marine waste.
Marine waste is a complex problem that knows no territorial or national boundaries. Problems do not only come directly from the sea, but from how the chemical industry produces and distributes plastic products, and how consumers or communities handle the waste they produce. The post-COVID transition period for the return of tourists to Bali has started, and it must be balanced by the readiness of tourist destinations to conduct themselves as cleanly and sustainable in the longer term. A travel report shows that 83% of tourists feel sustainable tourism is very important, and 62% of global tourists prefer destinations and accommodations that are certified environmentally friendly. The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy of Indonesia is trying to respond to the changes in global tourism trends by developing tourist destinations into smart-green destinations.
The seminar lined up speakers from local government and agencies, the community, academia, industry, and media. Speakers included:
- Hanggara Sukandar, Director of Environment & Sustainability Affairs, Responsible Care®️ Indonesia
- Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno, Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy
- Professor Tjokorda Oka Artha, Deputy Governor of Bali
- I Made Teja, Head of Bali Provincial Environment Agency
- Ida Bagus Agung, Chairman of the Bali Tourism Board
- Putu Ivan Yunatana, Founder of Bali Waste Cycle
- M. Fahrian Yovantra, Head of Programs, Greeneration Foundation
- Agustinus Apollo Daton, Head of the Jaringan Jurnalis Peduli Sampah (J2PS – an Indonesian Journalist Association that is aware of waste)
The hybrid seminar was attended by 37 media, and over 100 participants including those from the Ministry of Tourism, Bali Province Government, Denpasar City Government, as well as local waste banks and waste collection communities. Subsequently there were 58 media coverage reaching a substantial number of the general public in Indonesia.
Each year roughly 100 million spilled plastic pellets are reported to enter the environment, making their way into local waterways and eventually into estuaries and oceans. Apart from organizing the educational LDRP in Indonesia, Trinseo believes that the prevention and limitation of pellet, flake, and powder loss must be a priority in the plastics industry to limit this critical issue for our environment. Not only is this a litter issue, but these pellets, flakes, and powders can also harm birds or marine animals. Since 2014, Trinseo has been an active member of Operation Clean Sweep®, a plastics industry association effort to reduce plastic pellets in the environment. The program helps facilities implement good housekeeping through pellet, flake, and powder containment practices and work toward achieving zero pellet, flake, and powder loss — thereby protecting the environment and saving valuable resources.