9th October 2021 – In an attempt to draw world’s attention towards deteriorating marine life caused by the use of single plastic, a plastic museum containing 10,000 plastic bottles has been erected in the city of Gresik in the East Java province of Indonesia.
Apparently, Indonesia is the world’s second largest marine plastic polluter after China. Indonesia is facing a plastic waste emergency where it produces 6.8 million tons of plastic waste per year and only 10% of it is being recycled. About 625,000 tons of annual plastic is thrown in the oceans. Not only this has led to huge landfills at various places, it has destroyed marine life and hindered crop production in the nearby areas.
Prigi Arisandi, an Indonesian biologist and Goldman Environmental Prize winner, has been working with the government to stop industrial pollution flowing into the rivers. He and his team of volunteers have constructed the plastic museum to attract public’s concerns towards this environmental hazard which they believe is partly homegrown.
A statue of Dewi Sri, a Javanese and Balinese Hindu goddess, who is associated with wealth and prosperity, has been assembled using plastic collected from nearby areas.
