Kulon Progo Students Convert Plastic Bags into Asphalt Making Materials
Kulon Progo, MINA – Kulon Progo district government has involved students in the project of converting plastic bags into asphalt making material.
“This is also a learning for students since elementary school to care about environment with properly managing plastics waste. The waste is not to be thrown away, but taken to school then we take it and we deposit it into the Waste Bank,” said Arif Prastowo, head of the Kulonprogo Environmental Service, reported by Kompas on Friday.
There are around 70,000 students, ranging from elementary to high school or equivalent in Kulon progo. If every day all students carry one plastic bag, it is expected that in a month there will be more than two million plastic bags collected.
The Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing requested the Environmental Service Kulon Progo to provide 8.5 tons of plastic. The plastic will be used as a mixture of asphalt which can pave the road for five kilometers.
In addition to involving students, Kulon Progo Regency also empowers waste banks to realize projects turning plastic bags into asphalt materials.
Kulon Progo Regency has 94 waste banks. But only 37 are active.”
The asphalt project is made from plastic bag waste that becomes an opportunity to reactivate and empower the waste bank,” Arif said.
Garbage Bank, said Arif, must receive a plastic deposit from the school. The waste bank must then provide savings for school children who deposit trash.
After recording the scales in a waste savings account, it is only sent to the Dhuawar Sejahtera Waste Garbage Bank which he leads to be sorted and processed into small pieces. It is not all plastic bags can be asphalt mixtures but only thin and shiny plastic.
Then, the plastic selection from all schools in Kulonprogo is chopped into small pieces using a PU machine that will become asphalt mixture
So far, people generally have not understood, there is knowledge but it is not sufficient. The equipment is not touching there. But with this program (asphalt) it is hoped that people can understand. (T/Sj/RS5)
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
