Municipal Waste Composting, a Great Opportunity

It started almost one and a half years ago when YBUL and partners initiated a series of presentation to selected local governments about municipal waste composting program.  Approximately nine (9) local governments plus one (1) land and housing developer have been approached.  YBUL offers an environmentally friendly technology to convert municipal wastes into good quality of compost and non-organic brickets as low-calorie combustible materials.

As mandated in the State Law 18/2008 on Waste Management, the municipal wastes have to be processed.  Open dumping and sanitary landfill systems are no longer permitted, and in the future, efforts have to be directed toward reduction of waste volume from the initial waste production points, including household level.

YBUL and partners, PT. Fastindo Global Utama and PT. Bathara Sakti, have developed a waste processing scheme using a German technology on aerobic composting process.  Backhus Ecoengineers and Greentech Waste & Energy of Germany will provide technical and construction supports.  Potential markets for the products of the waste composting process (composts and low-calorie brickets) are widely available, including: Petro Kimia Gresik for organic fertilizer, Bangka-Belitung for reclaiming abandoned mining lands, reconstructing agricultural soil structure in critical lands, etc.

In April 2010, an MOU between PT. Fastindo Global Utama and the Government of Salatiga city was signed, for collaboration on processing Salatiga’s municipal wastes.  Approximately 300 tons/day of wastes (including old wastes in the sanitary landfill area) in Salatiga will be processed to produce approximately 26 tons/day of composts, 20 tons/day of biomass (RDF = refuse derived fuel), plus 11 tons/day of recyclable materials.  As with other local governments, under the collaboration scheme for waste processing, Salatiga city will only need to provide three basic elements: land for the integrated waste composting process, permits for the overall operation, and continuous daily supply of wastes.  The rests, including machineries, building construction, organizations and management, will be provided by the German and Indonesian investors.  YBUL will primarily manage community related projects and CDM related programs as the integral parts of the overall waste management scheme.
It is expected that by mid of June 2010 a feasibility study (FS) will start taking place.

By Agus Widianto,  Executive Director of YBUL.