Plastic Trash

I expected to see plastic trash floating in the water fairly often during our cruise. 

Ten days ago, I saw for the first time on this trip plastic trash floating on the water near the ship. We were in the 5 km wide strait between the islands of the Komodo National Park. Since then, waste has been fairly ubiquitous in the waters and beaches along the coasts in Indonesia, particularly in populated areas. 

Some observations:

• On Rinca Island, we were each handed a plastic bottle of fresh water before starting our tour. The caps were sealed with a thin plastic film wrapping, which you tear off in order to unscrew the (separate) cap. I drank my water quickly and looked for a place to dispose of the container, cap, and wrapping. Nothing in sight, neither at the boat dock nor at the visitor center. I handed my bottle back to the young lady who gave it to me. What she did with it remains unknown. 
• A plastic refuse container (photo at top) was prominently placed near the entrance to our cruise terminal on Bali. Good sign. 

• Containers for refuse were also well placed and labeled at the Uluwatu Temple. I suspect the free ranging monkeys have their own ideas about refuse. But I noticed no litter there.
• The beaches we visited in Bali had varying amounts of scattered trash. Those on the west coast appeared to have more than those on the east, whether due to currents or to cleaning crews. The eastern beaches are generally more upscale. 
• My walking tours of Lembar and Pare Pare took me along streets typical of the lower classes in the land. Where there were people, there was trash lying around. Lots of people? Lots of trash. But there were a few encouraging signs. 

• This young lady was carrying two large sacks of empty drink bottles. I presume she has some economic incentive. 

• These dumpsters outside the marketplace were being loaded with trash from donkey carts or bike carts, with varying degrees of success. 

• I bought two bottles of drinking water at a convenience store. I drank one immediately and asked for a plastic bag to carry the other. But the store had no small plastic film bags, only larger tote bags, made of fabric. (That sounds like home.) I ended up giving my second bottle of water to someone else. 

One starts to appreciate why getting rid of plastic is so difficult in a land like Indonesia. It has made lives better for hundreds of millions of people. Recycling plastic is hard enough in western countries. Replacing it with something else is expensive. But I remain optimistic that younger generations will rise to the challenges (technical, economical, political) of reducing if not eliminating the plastics in our environment.