Jakarta - The perseverance of Habir, a local hero in Pertamina EP (PEP) Tarakan Field's CSR program, in freeing the sea from plastic bottle waste has earned recognition at the Local Hero Inspirations Awards by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK). Habir successfully secured the sixth position (Third Honorable Champion) among hundreds of champions of community empowerment and environmental programs from all over Indonesia who participated in the selection process for this event.

The awards were presented to Habir by the Secretary General of KLHK, Bambang Hendroyono, during the Environmental Control Festival 2024 event held in Jakarta on Wednesday (24/4). Habir is a community figure who collaborates with PEP Tarakan Field in the Wet Roots Program (Akar Basah), a plastic waste recycling initiative for seaweed farmers in Mamolo Beach, Tanjung Harapan, Nunukan, North Kalimantan.

"I was moved to take action after seeing my village filled with plastic bottle waste used as buoys and planting media for seaweed. Piles of plastic bottles are everywhere. The land for children to play on is also becoming increasingly limited," said Habir. As one of the largest seaweed-producing areas in Indonesia, Nunukan Regency faces the problem of plastic bottle waste.

Habir then took the initiative to recycle this waste into "new" plastic bottles of better quality. "Recycled plastic bottles can be used for up to six cycles of seaweed planting, making them more environmentally friendly compared to previous plastic bottles that were usable for only one cycle," explained Habir. Until now, the supply of plastic bottles used for buoys and seaweed planting media has relied on plastic bottle waste imported from abroad.

Cahyo Tri Mulyanto, Manager of PEP Tarakan Field, explained that the Wet Roots Program was initiated in 2021. This program is part of the company's Social and Environmental Responsibility (TJSL or CSR) program, which contributes to solving the problem of plastic bottle waste in society.

The plastic bottle recycling group initiated by Habir received equipment support from PEP Tarakan Field for the plastic bottle recycling process. "Nowadays, people no longer dispose of plastic bottles indiscriminately. They sell used plastic bottles to us for recycling," he explained. Hence, he has a slogan: "Waste becomes Opportunity, Opportunity becomes Money."

Since using buoys resulting from the innovation of the Wet Roots Program, plastic waste in Habir's village has decreased by up to 7.5 tons per year, with 6.8 tons being PET plastic waste. Habir's group earns an average annual income of up to Rp175 million. Additionally, thanks to the substitution of these environmentally friendly buoys, farmers are estimated to achieve efficiency or total savings of up to Rp358.8 million.

Habir and his group can only fulfill 30 percent of the plastic bottle requirements for buoys and seaweed planting media in the area. "If this program is widely replicated, it will undoubtedly assist in meeting the needs of seaweed farmers," he stated.

Meanwhile, Dony Indrawan, Manager of Communication Relations & CID at PT Pertamina Hulu Indonesia (PHI), revealed that the achievement in the KLHK Local Hero Inspirations Awards is the government's recognition of the environmental management and community development programs or CSR of PEP Tarakan Field. "The company is committed to implementing TJSL programs that support community development and empowerment. This achievement shows that the Wet Roots Program is in line with the steps towards achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), namely goal 8 on decent work and economic growth, goal 11 on sustainable cities and communities, goal 12 on sustainable production and consumption, and goal 14 on marine ecosystems," he concluded.

PT Pertamina EP (PEP) Tarakan Field, under Subholding Upstream Regional 3 led by PT Pertamina Hulu Indonesia (PHI), operates upstream oil and gas operations by Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles. Through cooperation with SKK Migas, PEP Tarakan Field, together with PHI's subsidiaries and affiliates, implements innovative Corporate Social Responsibility programs in the fields of Economy, Education, Health, Environment, Infrastructure, and Disaster Response to support sustainable community empowerment and the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). PHI's headquarters is in Jakarta. More information about PHI is available at https://phi.pertamina.com.