JAKARTA, NNC – A total of 2,900 plastic straws are collected in just one hour by 300 employees of The Body Shop along with the community around the Hotel Indonesia roundabout during Earth Day in Jakarta, Sunday (4/23/2018).
To celebrate Earth Day that falls every April 22, The Body Shop Indonesia carries out the Reject Plastic Straws Campaign to educate the public about the danger of using plastic straws to the environment.
The Body Shop Indonesia CEO Aryo Widhiwardhono said that this campaign has a real goal to educate Indonesians about the danger of using plastic straws. On Earth Day last year, the company campaigned against the use of plastic bags.
Based on research data, Divers Clean Action estimates the use of plastic straws in Indonesia has reached 93.2 million items every day, which in total is the same length as five times round trip from Jakarta to Papua.
Plastic straws are always included in the top 10 rubbish that pollute the ocean. Nearly 90 percent of waste in the ocean contains plastic and at least eight million tons of plastic pollute the world’s oceans each year. This number is the same as emptying a truck load of plastic waste into the ocean every minute.
Now, according to Aryo, the company is trying to encourage people to be more critical and reject the use of plastic straws. Instead, people can carry environmentally friendly straws made of stainless steel or bamboo that they can use repeatedly.
Secretary General of the Waste Bank Association of Indonesia, Wilda Yanti, said that waste management and sorting through education approach is very important. The Volunteering Day momentum of The Body Shop is a form of its concrete commitment to educate the public.
Support from sector of facilities and infrastructure of waste management is also needed. Plastic straw waste collected yesterday will be handed over to the Waste Bank of Benteng Kreasi in Rawasari, Central Jakarta.
The campaign also featured GM of Corporate Affairs and Sustainability of The Body Shop Indonesia, Rica Anggraini and environmentalist, Nadine Chandrawinata.
