Centre for Agrotechnology Innovation of Universitas Gadjah Mada has organised a workshop for the development of campus waste self-management nationally.
This event is to formulate a national consortium for waste self-management. The seminar presented resource persons Ir. Dodi Krispatmadi, M.Env.E., (Director for Environmental and Settlement Development Directorate) and Dr. Rachmawan Budiarto, S.T., M.T. (Secretary at UGM Community Service Directorate). Participants from universities in Indonesia joined the event on Thursday (14/12) in Yogyakarta.
Dodi explained the latest data on waste service rate have reached 79.80%. According to Dodi, increasing population has also increased waste piles. On the other hand, there is no increase in facilities and infrastructure of waste management. He said there was the problem of limited lands for landfills, especially in major cities.
“One of the solutions is to reduce waste from the sources to minimise the burden of waste management at the landfills,” he said. Dodi further explained the role of university in waste management. He explained that the role of higher learning institutions in waste management is stated in the government regulation No. 81 Year 2012, Article V on Technology Development and Application.
“One of the rules for higher learning institutions is to do research and development of environmentally friendly technology for waste management, in line with national policy and strategy,” he added.
Waste management on campuses, however, is often hampered by funding problems, which needs help from external partners. During the event, Rachmawan explained the experience of UGM Centre for Energy Studies to get international funding. Through a grant, the UGM Centre has been able to organise the Centre for Development of Sustainable Region (CDSR). One of the outcomes of CDSR was sustainable development of archipelagic areas. According to Rachmawan, scrutiny and detail in funding proposals became the key to get the funding.