Wasting Away in Bali

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Posted: 01 Jul 2009 | 7:37 am

A few weeks ago I was reading an article in the New York Times about the growing issue of waste in another leading Asian resort destination Bali. It struck a chord with me at a time when we are seeing a growing groundswell of awareness of green issues starting with the recent Summer in Phuket island wide beach clean up. Getting to the root of the problem makes so much sense as sustainability of these campaigns and trying to solve garbage disposal before it hits the beach in the first place.

Two non profit organizations in Bali have been set up with Bali Fokus who offer a low cost village based way of working and a more sophisticated Navigat Organic Energy who look at more mass solutions with landfill anaerobic digestion and gasification. Even back of these two pioneering efforts trash in Bali's booming tourism driven economy are continuing to mount up.

There look to be lessons learned from what is happening in Bali and these two models both have merits and could work well in Phuket. Cause and effect aside, greater attention needs to be put into getting local government and residents involved and looking at introducing education into the schools so that future generations can work towards what is no doubt one of the biggest challenges facing the fragile environment of the island.

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Hi Bill..I´m enjoying keeping up with Phuket events from here in Ibiza, Spain, where I spend 6 monthsa year. After 30 years in the Hotel business there.The subject of "the trash mountains" on our beautiful eco-minded islands paradises is mutual to all such tourist destinations...and is nearly aways a huge problem.
Wasted budgets, corrupt administrators no professional expertise etc...result in the pollution of our island home. What is actually being done in Phuket? who is in charge of this, and what expertise is being consulted? Politicians and administrators are incapable of dealing with this,normally because budgets are not available... The local press seem to have little interest in the "dirty" unpopular subject. Is there any chance that Phuket might do it differently ?

Bill Barnett responds:
It seems people are becoming more aware, Summer in Phuket has been a starting point and its not a matter of getting a buy in from the local Government and populace, in the meantime, good to pitch in and start at grassroots level.

Bunny Gray, 14 Jul 2009 | 4:16 pm