Arya Dipa, Bandung, West Java – A rally against the construction of incinerators took place on the sidelines of the 2018 International Zero Cities Conference in Bandung, West Java, on Monday.
Eight members of the West Java chapter of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) displayed posters conveying their concerns on the impact of incinerators on human health and the environment.
Walhi West Java director Dadan Ramdan said the Supreme Court had granted a judicial review request filed by the National Coalition against Burning of Waste against Presidential Regulation (Perpres) No.18/2016 on the acceleration of infrastructure development of incinerator-based waste-powered electricity plants.
"With the revocation of the Perpres, the development of incinerator technology in Indonesia has been prohibited. The plan for central and local administrations to tackle waste using incinerator technology is wrong and has no legal basis," said Dadan.
The rally got the attention of hundreds of conference participants, including from India, the United States and the Philippines.
Dadan called on the West Java administration to cancel its plan to operate Legok Nangka, an incinerator-based trash disposal site, and to construct disposal sites using similar incinerator technology in Bogor, Cirebon, Indramayu and other places in West Java.
"Incinerator technology is not technology that is in line with the zero waste concept. Composting technologies and waste recycling remain technology that is mostly suitable to manage urban waste environmentally friendly and in line with the concept of zero waste cities," said Dadan. (ebf)