Indonesia's trash is a global problem, but for now, the solutions are local -- Read and share our stories!
The Indonesian government has pledged to reduce plastic waste by 70 percent by 2025. | Photo by Rafi Akhdantyo/AFP/Getty Images |
If you're in Surabaya, Indonesia's second-largest city, you can use plastic trash as bus fare—five plastic bottles or 10 plastic cups are the equivalent of a two-hour ticket. A year after this program began, each bus is collecting up to 7.5 tons of plastic a month, which the city then cleans and auctions off to recycling companies. The initiative aims to incentivize the use of public transit and to clear Surabaya's streets and waterways of the plastic trash that has accompanied Indonesia's rapidly growing economy. Polluted groundwater and untrustworthy water supplies mean that nearly every Indonesian who can afford it buys bottled beverages. |
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