Plastic Waste Exchanged for Phone Credit in Bogor

TheIndonesia.co - The Bogor City Government, West Java, cooperates with cellular operator companies to make a breakthrough in reducing plastic bottle waste by exchanging it for phone credit worth Rp10,000 per bottle. Bogor Mayor Bima Arya Sugiarto stated that the breakthrough made by the government and the private sector by developing digital technology for converting plastic bottle waste into phone credit is expected to build public awareness to sort waste and care for the environment.

"Like I said yesterday, in Bogor City, there are around 650 tons of waste in a day, 14 percent of which is plastic waste and takes a long time to decompose, this is our joint effort," said Bima in Bogor, Sunday, June 26, 2022.

Bima hopes that the launch of waste exchange technology in the form of a machine connected to a cellphone using Indosat and Tri operators at the BTM Mall can attract the enthusiasm of residents, especially young people. They can immediately collect plastic bottles so they are not piled up in the trash.

The waste exchange machine into phone credit is expected to reduce plastic bottle waste that reaches 4,300 kg per day. The Trash Bank in Bogor City can only process 300 kilograms of plastic waste per day.

In addition to exchanging waste for credit, Bima also appreciates the presence of Plasticpay which will turn plastic bottle waste into valuable and cool crafts, ranging from bags, prayer mats, hats, sandals to shoes. This step is also part of empowering the MSME partner community.

"This means that from upstream plastic can be collected more efficiently through Indosat's reverse vending machine. Then by Plasticpay, these plastic bottles are processed into something valuable and useful. So, from problems to blessings, from plastic waste to phone credits," he explained.

Meanwhile, the CEO of Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison (IOH) Vikram Sinha explained that the Waste Becomes Credit program is one of IOH's CSR programs in the Environment pillar. This program aims to support government programs in reducing plastic bottle waste and preserving nature by utilizing digital technology.

"We are honored to collaborate with the Bogor City Government and other parties, launching this program in the community to encourage clean living behavior and manage waste into something that provides benefits and creates additional value," said Vikram Sinha.

The community, said Sinha, only needs to take a few easy steps to convert plastic bottle waste into credit. First, download and register with the Plasticpay application which is available on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store. Second, insert used plastic bottles into the RVM to exchange one bottle for IM3 or Tri pulses worth IDR 10,000.

Furthermore, people who exchange used plastic bottles will get 56 points per bottle which will later be exchanged for several options in the application. The points earned can be exchanged for IM3 or Tri phone credits which can be used to purchase data quota, voice calls, SMS, and over-the-top (OTT) services such as live music and movie broadcast applications.

"Today's launch is the first step to spread the movement to preserve the environment in a sustainable manner while empowering the community to recycle waste into something more useful," said Sinha.