A number of youths have cleaned up Balangan Beach and Dreamland Beach, South Kuta, Badung, Bali, removing garbage on Sunday, 26th December 2021.
They are members of the Dare to Take Care of the Earth, or Berani Jaga Bumi, a movement consisting of volunteers, students, local communities, and foreign citizens who are called to go down to clean the beach. Their actions were also supported by Indofood.
The event coordinator, Febby Alvian Permana, 26, said that the action to clean up the beach was motivated by the tsunami that occurred several years ago in Indonesia and other Asian countries, the impact of which brought waste in the form of garbage from the sea to the mainland.
“We preventively want to raise awareness of the younger generation to care about the environment, so as an example to encourage young people to actively care about nature,” said Febby.
In early December 2021, there was rain and strong winds in the South Bali region. As a result of the disaster, several villages in Nusa Penida and other areas of Bali experienced landslides, flash floods, and dozens of pigs and even motorbikes drifted into the sea.
“At several beaches in the South Kuta area, there was an extraordinary volume of garbage that polluted several beaches, including Balangan Beach and Dreamland Beach which we targeted for today’s cleaning activities,” he said.
The day was not only about cleaning the beach; the local community was also educated about waste sorting. Dozens of garbage bags were also filled.
“It was mitigation education so that garbage no longer pollutes the sea and rivers and no garbage accumulates. At two points on Balangan Beach in the morning until noon and Dreamland Beach in the afternoon, we also sort it out so plastic waste will be recycled into something useful,” he explained.
With a garbage-free beach, it is also hoped that it will attract tourists to come to Balangan Beach and Dreamland and have an impact on increasing the economy for the community and surrounding traders after being hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“From this action, of course, it is related to tourism. If the beach is clean, tourists are interested in coming here. In the future, there will be several other beaches and rivers that we will clean,” said Febby.
“We hope that this small activity can have a big impact on the local environment. Our efforts can be something for the continuity of Bali tourism in general and help the surrounding community to be responsible for their environment.”