BIODIVERSITY
DAM THE TRASH
BALI, INDONESIA
In areas with limited garbage collection infrastructure, travelers can unintentionally contribute to local waste issues. By volunteering with organizations like Sungai Watch, you can actively reduce the impact of trash on fragile ecosystems and help protect local waterways.
What's
changing
Approximately 80% of ocean plastic pollution originates from rivers. Addressing sources of litter and removing trash upstream are essential for safeguarding marine ecosystems and ensuring clean water for communities that rely on rivers and streams.
What's already
possible
In Indonesia, an organization called Sungai Watch is working to prevent trash in rivers from flowing to the ocean.
Seizing
the opportunity
More than half the waste in Bali is not collected. Sungai Watch studies each polluted waterway and installs multiple floating barriers throughout its course. The barriers to capture floating plastics and volunteers remove collected debris daily. They sort trash into categories and document, clean, shred and recycle it. The organization hosts emergency cleanups and runs a platform to map illegal trash dumps.
Standout
tactic
The organization has a sister company that uses the shredded plastic to create sustainable furniture and goods.
How
it helps
The organization has installed more than 300 barriers in rivers throughout the country and improved water for 260 villages. Over 1,000 weekly cleanups in Indonesia are related to Sungai Watch, and they have prevented more than 2.3 million kilograms (2,500 tons) of plastic waste from reaching the ocean.
Diving
deeper
How can cleanup organizations ensure that technology, like floating barriers, do not alter the natural flow of rivers or disrupt aquatic ecosystems?
Increasing
impact
Plastic pollutes every river on earth. Sungai Watch has a vision to install trash barriers on the worst of them.The right partners could help amplify this vision, raise funds and get clearance for installation.
Traveling
better
Travel is inherently carbon intensive. Whether you are taking a mini-break or an annual vacation, consider ways to minimize your impact by staying longer in one place, reconsidering how you travel to the destination, and supporting businesses that are working to make their community and the world a better place.
