IPB University Students Encourage Hegarmanah Village Residents to Practice Waste Management
Students participating in IPB University’s Thematic Community Service Program (KKNT) conducted a socialization program on waste sorting and management in Hegarmanah Village, Cianjur Regency, West Java. The socialization was held in the village hall and each neighborhood association (RW) in the area.
The outreach program included hands on practice in the field so that residents could immediately apply what they learned in their own yards. Waste was categorized into organic and inorganic. Organic waste was then processed using household scale compost bins and biopores in the yards. In addition, the students taught the community how to make low cost EM4 using ingredients found in the kitchen.
“Composting organic waste is very easy and can be done at home. All you need is a waste container and EM4 to accelerate the composting process. Composting only takes two months if you use EM4,” said Saddam Fuhan, a student representative.
“Making EM4 is also easy, it only requires rice washing water, leftover rice, and sugar. It is more practical and environmentally friendly,” continued Saddam, a student at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at IPB University.
This outreach addresses the waste management issues in Hegarmanah Village, as highlighted by the Bojongpicung Health Center team. The absence of a final disposal site (FDS) capable of accommodating waste has led to environmental problems.
“People often dump waste into irrigation channels or on the side of the road because they cannot process it. Others burn it in their yards even though their houses are close together. If this continues, it will gradually cause disease,” said Fahrizal Oki Naufal, SKM, an environmental sanitation worker at the Bojongpicung Community Health Center.
Tukijo, Chief of the Welfare Section (Kasi) of Hegarmanah Village, also added that waste management using compost bins and biopores can help reduce the waste problem in Hegarmanah Village.
“If all residents can do this at their respective homes, this waste management method can reduce the waste problem in the village. Especially if it is done consistently,” he added.
He hopes that the measures introduced by the IPB University student team can be implemented by the entire community, especially housewives.
At the end of the activity, the students handed over biopori drills and biopori caps to each neighborhood association so that residents could use them in their homes on a rotating basis. This program is expected to encourage the community to be more aware of the economic value of organic waste and to process waste sustainably in Hegarmanah Village. (*/Rz) (IAAS/HNY)
