Waste Management
Introduction
Bank Sampah Gili Indah is Gili Trawangan’s first recycling station. Established by the FMPL & Gili Eco Trust, this is where all the recyclable materials end up. This can include materials such as plastic bottles, cans, glass bottles and Tetrapak cartons. We process them, crush bottles and cartons into huge blocks and ship it to a recycling station in Lombok. The FMPL transport between 10-15 tonnes of recyclable waste off Gili T every fortnight.
Gili Eco Trust aims to sort the rubbish of the entire island and maximise the amount that can be recycled whilst limiting trash that gets sent to the dump. Eventually, we will become a zero-waste-to-landfill island! But we have a few more steps to go.
In 2017, the government started to build a new structure next to the island dump, the TPST (Tempat Pengolahan Sampah Terpadu). This will eventually become an integrated waste management headquarters. Dealing with all types of waste where it can be processed, crushed, repurposed and composted. We are looking to work in partnership with a company pioneering in pyrolysis machines to be able to turn unrecyclable (residual) waste back into oil, which we can then continue to power the island on.
When the FMPL are granted access to managing these new headquarters, we will be able to move our equipment from temporary shelters over the island into one central location, conveniently right beside the dump. This will open up more employment opportunities for the local population and increase the efficiency of trash processing on our tiny island.
FMPL
FMPL Stands for Front Masyarakat Peduli Lingkungan (Community front for environmental care). They work closely in partnership with the Gili Eco Trust in the waste collection logistics. First established in 1999 the Gili Eco Trust started working with them in 2007 through animal welfare for the rubbish ponies, then in 2008/9 to make plan for the dump and build a wall around, an incinerator and an access road. in 2010/11, GET organise a big fundraising with all stakeholders and donations from abroad to change the waste management with selected coloured bins for each type of rubbish.
In 2014/15, The GET spent time, efforts and money into making the waste management system better, working even closer to FMPL to organise waste pick ups, recycling and up cycling. The Gili Eco Trust spent time with the staff and the horses, teaching them how to take care of them, and get the horses back to a better health. Then worked on new routes and ways to optimize waste pick ups by encouraging selection of waste materials that could be sold for an income.
New Waste Management System
With our history dealing with waste and our lessons learned through the years, we started to be able to see our dream plan coming true. Since the TPST (sorting center) was finished in December 2019, we thought of that plan including all factors to make a sustainable waste management system that allows FMPL to be independent because of an efficient waste circular economy.
Due to Covid crisis, we couldn’t invest any fund to modify the sorting center but we established great partnership such as the one with TheSeaCleaners. Their help will come in modifying the sorting center according to our dream plan. Due to bureaucracy, we were only allowed to start modifying it in October 2023.
At the moment, we are still in the buildings and modifications as well as getting more employees ready to manage Gili T waste daily. We are getting everything sorted and organized to be able to welcome everyone living on the island to visit our sorting center, be aware of the size of the rubbish dump and start feeling involved and responsible of the future of the waste they produce. Through a contract and a WhatsApp group, we will get everyone
- to sort their waste: Organic and Inorganic (if not, FMPL won't collect)
- to learn about waste segregation
- to reward and shame people / business
- to keep on educating about waste (as education only works with repetitions)
- to make them feel responsible of their waste and the future of their island
Glass Upcycling
The Gili Eco Shop is a showroom of unique and hand cut upcycled glass products, all hand-selected from the glass bottles consumed on the island.
Bintang bottles can be sent back to the producers to be refilled. Yes, that’s right, if you want a truly zero-waste beverage in the Gili Islands, stick with Bintang! We can recycle the bottle caps and collect a donation when we send the bottles back to the Bintang factory.
But unfortunately, that doesn’t count for the other glass bottles. We collect these from the dump, or bars on the beach and make drinking glasses, ashtrays, lamps, earrings and other jewellery cut from bottles !
Local businesses can order a big batch of these sustainable products and we can personalise them with their logo or name etched in the glass, all done in our glass workshop directly on Gili Trawangan. A greener option for businesses to have professional and personal engraved products in their establishments, or for tourists to shop for cool gifts created on Gili Trawangan.
Proceeds of the Gili Glass campaign go directly back into the recycling projects, and people buying them are helping us to keep the island clean!
Save our Paradise
Gili Trawangan
