Sungai Watch is cleaning up the plastic-infested rivers and illegal landfills of Bali.
Piles of rubbish in Kuta, Bali. Agung Parameswara. CC BY-SA 4.0
Despite its reputation as a tropical island paradise, Bali’s beaches and waterways are far from pristine. Plastic pollution runs rampant throughout this island nation in Indonesia, with the country being the world’s “second-largest contributor of plastic pollution to the ocean.” During the wet season, rain and runoff wash pollution from the streets and rivers into the oceans, bringing waves of trash that pile up on beaches and entangle marine life.
Bali, an island that welcomes more than six million foreign visitors yearly, has struggled to maintain a comprehensive waste system. Many landfill sites and recycling centers are almost at capacity. Although the landfill site Suwung TPA was scheduled to close in 2022, 1,200 tons of garbage are still dumped there daily. On top of this struggling waste system, there are currently 350 known illegal dump sites in Bali, where trash is dumped without proper management or permission, often on the side of a road or near a river.
It is estimated that every month, nearly 30 million plastic bottles are used and thrown away in Bali. Without the infrastructure to support a unified and adequate waste system in this high-waste-generating island, the likelihood of those bottles ending up in a recycling center is slim. Instead, the result is overcrowded landfills, illegal dumps and pollution in rivers and oceans. On top of plastic pollution’s ugly and suffocating appearance, it disrupts the environment by choking out animal habitats and leaking toxins into waterways.
Among rivers congested with plastics and beaches suffering under piles of trash, there is a glimmer of hope for a cleaner future: Sungai Watch. Sungai Watch is an organization that has implemented physical trash barriers in more than 300 rivers, collecting nearly 3 million kg of trash. Their design is simple: implement the barriers, clean up its collection daily and stop plastic before it reaches the ocean.
Sungai Watch writes that “more than 80% of plastic pollution in the ocean comes from rivers and streams.” Their mission is to stop this trash before it reaches the oceans through their innovative trash barrier. After the barrier is set up in a river, pollution flows directly into it to be caught and collected. In working to address the sources of plastic pollution, Sungai Watch also analyzes the collected trash to fuel discussions with policymakers or communities about waste reduction.
The non-profit was founded in 2020 by three siblings, Gary, Kelly and Sam Bencheghib. Starting the organization in Bali and expanding to East Java in 2023, the team hopes to implement their design beyond Indonesia, tackling the world’s plastic pollution crisis. Since its inception, Sungai Watch now employs over 100 “River Warriors.” These employees are locals dedicated to cleanup, management and sorting in an initiative to empower and employ local communities.
Beyond river cleanups, Sungai Watch hosts “emergency” cleanups at illegal landfills on rivers or in local villages. They lead with the idea of community empowerment, combining education and outreach with their work. Community involvement and community-led work are vital to ensure the longevity of Sungai Watch’s mission and inspire a cleaner future. They have also recently launched the company Sungai Design, where they sell sleek and attractive furniture made from these collected river plastics. The company’s cleanups, upcycling and education efforts create a circular model, essential to the future of sustainability.
Sungai Watch’s trash barrier design makes their work unique compared to the traditional beach cleanup. This innovation is a preemptive measure to collect trash before it reaches the ocean, and its design can be implemented in rivers worldwide. Still, Sungai Watch is not alone in its mission to clean Bali’s beaches. There are many other awesome organizations present on the island that are tackling the plastic pollution crisis. Like 4Ocean, an internationally present nonprofit that hosts amazing cleanups and has gained popularity for its stylish bracelets made of recycled pollution. 4Ocean began in Bali but has since expanded to Guatemala and Florida. The Zero Waste Center also organizes beach cleanups but is a larger educational center focused on “zero-waste training.” They train businesses, host an educational classroom for children and organize coral reef restoration.
Although the work of Sungai Watch and other like-minded organizations is admirable and heroic, the issues of plastic waste in Bali must be tackled from the source. Eco-conscious agendas focusing on policies to reduce the production and distribution of plastics, as well as the implementation of a unified and comprehensive waste infrastructure, are vital to a clean future.
GET INVOLVED:
If you are interested in getting involved with Sungai Watch or reducing plastic pollution in Bali, there are several avenues to get involved.
Donate: Donating supports an organization’s work in all ways and helps fund more cleanups. Donate to organizations conducting cleanups in Bali, like Sungai Watch, Zero Waste Center, Trash Hero or 4Ocean.
Volunteer: If you are in Bali, even if just for a short vacation, check out Sungai Watch’s calendar to see if you might be able to help with a cleanup. Getting involved in environmental work and volunteering while traveling is a great way to participate in sustainable tourism and give back to local communities. Trash Hero also has chapters located across Southeast Asia and if you are interested in getting involved in other parts of the region.
To be involved in reducing plastic waste is to be conscious. When on vacation, it’s sometimes easy to forget the eco-friendly habits that you might practice at home. But still, especially when traveling to nations with less capacity for waste management, making mindful decisions about reducing your plastic consumption can go a long way.
Libby Scaperotta
Libby is a recent graduate from Middlebury College, where she studied Environmental Policy and Geography. She enjoys travel, photography, and spending time outdoors with people she loves. She plans to pursue a career dedicated to environmental work and wishes to share important stories that may inspire action.