DKI Judged Not Ready To Apply The Plastic Bag Ban, Traders Asked For Allowance

JAKARTA - The Indonesian Market Traders Association (IKAPPI) assesses that the Provincial Government (Pemprov) of DKI Jakarta is not ready to implement Governor Regulation Number 142 of 2019 concerning the mandatory use of environmentally friendly shopping bags.

The head of the IKAPPI Education and Social Welfare Sector, Widyanto Kurniawan, said that this could be seen from the solution to implementing the regulation. In addition, the socialization was not maximal, so single-use plastic bags were still used.

"Ready to publish, not ready in a thorough and thorough calculation," said Widyanto, Sunday, July 19.

According to him, plastic bags are the best containers used for several wet commodities. That way, until no other material is found, the policy is deemed ineffective.

When referring to the transitional mass from leaf-based bags to plastic, that is considered the best. The reason is, plastic material is more efficient and the price is much cheaper.

"The alternative solution at that time was because the price was cheaper, could be found anywhere, was hygienic, did not leak, and the most important thing was that it could be obtained at a relatively cheap price," said Widyanto.

For this reason, continued Widyanto, his party encourages the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government to cooperate in finding a shopping bag solution with a material that is better than plastic. However, while looking for a solution, the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government is advised to provide flexibility in the use of plastic bags.

Today, plastic is still the most efficient basic material for bags for traders. Because, the price is cheap and easy to get.

"Traders do not want to lose customers by limiting the use of plastic bags because they pose a risk to the presence of visitors because cheaper, more effective and more hygienic solutions are not provided to shop at traditional markets," said Widyanto.

On a previous occasion, Head of the DKI Jakarta Environment Agency Andono Warih explained the reason for the DKI Provincial Government to ban single-use plastics. The waste problem is one of the classic problems in Jakarta, apart from flooding and congestion.

Based on data from the Department of LH, the waste pile at the end of 2019 reached 7,702 tons / day which entered the Bantargebang TPST, where 34% of the accumulated waste at Bantargebang TPST was plastic waste.

"This is because this type of plastic bag does not sell to scavengers, which can be recycled by the recycling industry. This type of waste takes tens to hundreds of years to decompose naturally," Andono told reporters, Wednesday, July 1.