…if people eat the fish, especially productive mothers, it can make their baby get impaired.
Batam, Riau Island (ANTARA) - Investing in plastic waste recycling facilities could prove very beneficial because it could prevent physical impairment in future generations, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan has said.

“In my opinion, this is a very good investment, (because) it is a part of the recycling process, which is very concerned by the government,” he added here on Thursday.

He emphasized that plastic waste is very dangerous, especially if it turns into microplastic and gets eaten by fish.

“…if people eat the fish, especially productive mothers, it can make their baby get impaired," he said.

Hence, the coordinating minister appealed to the public to not throw plastic waste carelessly so that it can be easily collected and recycled.

He also lauded PT Free The Sea, a subsidiary of private company PT WIK Batam, for collecting plastic waste and processing it into useful products.

The company has invested US$60 million in the recycling project, he noted.

"Do not only bring the highlight to the value of the investment ... But (you should) also assess the (recycle) technology applied and the huge benefits (of the recycling attempt)," Pandjaitan said.

Meanwhile, head of PT Free The Sea, Bahri Beyhan, said that the company recycles plastic bottle waste into raw materials for making coffee machines, which can support environmental sustainability in Batam city, Riau Islands province.

“The goal of Free The Sea is collecting plastic waste so it does not pollute the sea because the sea is an important asset, especially in Batam city," he added.

His company chose Batam city as the location for developing the recycling project because of its large population, thus the production of plastic bottle waste in the area is quite high.

Beyhan informed that his company managed to collect around 20 million polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles in 2022.

In addition to households, the company collects plastic bottle waste from hotels and schools, he said. People get paid based on the quality of the waste they collect, he added.

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Translator: Ilham Pratama, Uyu Liman
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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