| Abstract |
Indonesia's solid waste management sector is struggling to keep up with rapid urbanization, increasing consumerism, and industrialization and associated environmental effects. Community involvement in primary collection of solid waste in Indonesia has been varied in terms of organization, services provided, sustainability and effectiveness. Successful programmes have tended to be large, have fixed tariffs, and have policy as well as technical and initial support from government. Most programmes have resulted from government regulations which limit unhygienic practices and mandate the responsibility of local groups. The lessons learned in this study of the current status of community involvement in solid waste management, commissioned by the UNDP-World Bank Water and Sanitation Program, could provide invaluable guidance and direction in the extension of community-based solid waste management.
Four representative cities in Indonesia were selected for the study. In each city two low-income neighbourhoods were studied: one with a successful ongoing system of community-based primary collection of solid waste (COPRICOL) and the other where the system had been tried but was not yet successful. In Yogyakarta, Central Java, the two COPRICOL programmes were initiated in 1985 and although one program was originally managed by committee, in the end each programme was managed by one motivated community member, was informal and was subsidized by the manager. Community need led to the establishment in the early 1980s of the two community-based solid waste activities in Surabaya, East Java, which are still functioning. Both programs were set up as a part of the Kampong improvement programme and 100 percent of residents were obligated to pay a minimum amount, with wealthier residents contributing more. In one case the wife of the neighbourhood leader is the manager and has subsidized the program; in the other, the heads of each neighbourhood unit provide management functions. COPRICOL organizations introduced in 1992 in Ujung Pandang, South Sulawesi, ran into almost immediate problems caused by confusion among community and local administration, the termination of payment for collectors who therefore stopped work, and resistance from the beginning to paying city sanitation fees. In contrast, the approach used by the municipal government to deal with solid waste disposal problems in Padang, Sumatra, has led to the success of its programmes. Recognizing that municipally-managed systems could only provide 75 percent of services and that city sanitation fees were required to maintain city services, the community's role was seen as vital. Each neighbourhood was mandated to organize a neighbourhood program and through the local development group an organizational plan and task force led to the establishment of a COPRICOL programme. Funds were borrowed to purchase two trucks, monthly tariff fees were set, regulations about garbage collection were established and garbage collectors were provided with protective clothing and an adequate salary. Ninety-three percent of clients are satisfied with the service, which is showing a profit.
Key factors have been identified in the successful community-based solid waste management systems: convenience and need were the main motivators for most community members to join COPRICOL programs; replicability of COPRICOL systems is possible if political will is high and government regulations clearly support community-based efforts; government must provide services for the secondary phase of garbage disposal such as final dump sites and must give communities initial assistance of vehicles and equipment; well-managed organizations were more successful and sustainable than those under the leadership of one initiating person; COPRICOL managers' awareness of the total solid waste management ensures a suitable interface between the primary and secondary collection phases; the size of the area serviced has to be large enough to maintain a high income level and greater financial sustainability for the organization; and implementation of realistic and flexible plans for city sanitation fee payment ensured a much better result than rigid regulations.
To strengthen and expand COPRICOL programs, the study recommends a number of activities to be undertaken at community and government levels. Community awareness of the need for total solid waste management must be increased through relevant media, social preparation activities, economic studies showing the value of COPRICOL to the community, and area profiles to encourage the establishment of new COPRICOL organizations. Institutional capacity building in fee establishment and
collection processes, cross-subsidy mechanisms and management are necessary. It is important to facilitate a close relationship between government institutions and COPRICOL, to coordinate primary and secondary collection activities, and to encourage communities to contribute as much as possible to start-up capital costs. Municipalities have a role in allocating time and funds for further development of primary collection of solid waste with community involvement and participation. Governments should promote recycling and composting to reduce solid waste, and provide services for the secondary phase of garbage disposal. Policy development should promote the establishment of COPRICOL systems and encourage the private sector to collaborate with COPRICOL organizations
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