Based on data from the National Waste Management Information System (SIPSN) in 2021, national waste production is around 29.56 million tons/year. From the SIPSN data, the main composition is dominated by food waste (40.5%) and household waste (40.8%). In addition to this data, according to the World Population Review (2022), Indonesia is currently ranked 5th after the United States, India, China, and Brazil, as the country that produces the most plastic waste in the world.
The waste problem has also spread to the regions, one of which is Sumedang District, which based on SIPSN data in 2021, waste in Sumedang District is 161,462.89 tons/year. On the other hand, the reduction of waste from existing generation is only 4.11%, with a waste handling percentage per year of 26.72%.
The main problems are low waste management capacity, lack of public awareness of waste management, suboptimal waste management regulations, and little involvement of industry. Therefore, it is very necessary to make various efforts that involve the community, so that the impact is faster and wider for better waste management.
The data on household waste has become a concern for academics from the Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Indonesia (FK UI ), so that they seek to contribute and play an active role in realizing public health. By collaborating with the Regional Government of Sumedang Regency, the FK UI community service team, chaired by dr. Dewi Sukmawati, M.Kes., Ph.D. (Department of Histology), held socialization and education activities as well as empowerment of housewives related to waste sorting activities from home and the application of the 3R principles (reduce, reuse, and recycle) through Posyandu Balita activities, on September 19, 2022. The community service, which was supported by the Puskesmas of Tanjungsari Technical Implementation Unit (UPTD), was held at Integrated Health Service Post Violet, Tanjungsari Village, Tanjungsari Sub-district, Sumedang District. The Integrated Health Service Post is located in RW 03 and provides services to seven surrounding neighborhoods.
Reduce activities can be done by reducing waste generation, for example reusing used food boxes purchased to store or buy the next meal; usingeco bags to reduce the use of plastic bags.
Reuse can be done by reusing various materials or items that are no longer used for the same or different purposes, for example using used beverage bottles for flower pots, home decorations, and pencil cases; using used clothes for rags, and so on. Meanwhile, recycle can be done by reprocessing unused materials, for example processing used plastic detergent powder into shopping bags or home decorations, and processing organic waste into compost.
In addition, this socialization was also conveyed related to the types of waste, waste management efforts starting from home, active roles that can be carried out by housewives in sorting and reducing household waste, and the impact of waste piles on health. With the involvement of housewives in the waste sorting movement starting from home, it is hoped that they can become a driver of behavior change in the community related to disposing and sorting waste, and can apply the knowledge they have gained about waste sorting in their daily lives in the home, family, and wider community.
Along with Dr. Dewi Sukmawati, there were also members of the FM UI community service team consisting of a number of lecturers from various departments, namely Dr. Dwi Anita Suryandari, M.Biomed (Dept. of Medical Biology), Dr. drg. (Dept. of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology), and Dr. Rahimi Syaidah, Ph.D. (Dept. of Histology).
