JAKARTA: Dozens of shipping containers full of waste will be returned to France and other developed countries, Indonesia said on Tuesday, as Southeast Asian nations increasingly reject serving as dumping grounds for international trash.
The 49 containers were loaded with a combination of garbage, plastic waste and hazardous materials in violation of import rules, according to customs officials on Batam island. "We are coordinating the with the importer to immediately process their return," customs office spokesman Sumarna, who goes by one name, told AFP.
The waste came from the United States, Australia, France, Germany and Hong Kong, he added. Last month, Jakarta returned five containers of waste to the United States, joining a chorus of Southeast Asian nations that are increasingly unhappy about being used as dumping grounds for trash from Western countries.
China’s decision in 2018 to ban imports of foreign plastic waste threw global recycling into chaos, leaving developed nations struggling to find places to send their waste. Huge quantities of rubbish have since been redirected to Southeast Asia.
In May, neighbouring Malaysia vowed to ship back hundreds of tonnes of plastic waste. The Philippines, meanwhile, returned about 69 containers of rubbish back to Canada last month, putting an end to a diplomatic row between the two countries.
After Joe Biden’s 2020 election win, Warsaw did not officially recognise him as US president for several weeks
“If you tell this story anywhere in Europe, no one is going to believe you,” Magyar said
Many Panamanians streaming out of voting stations cited graft as one of their main concerns
The previous longest baguette of 132.62 meters was baked in the Italian city of Como in June 2019
The village is in northwest of onetime Ukrainian stronghold of Avdiivka which Russia captured in February
Lauga reached out to police early on April 28 and an investigation is underway, she said in an instagram post