Indonesia: Museum made from plastics to raise public awareness of environment

People walk through a tunnel built from plastic bottles collected from several rivers in Indonesia in three years, at the plastic museum constructed by local environmental activists in the town of Gresik, East Java province in September 28, 2021. (Photo: Reuters)

Hanoi (VNA) – With the aim of sending a message about the world's worsening ocean plastics crisis, environmentalists in Indonesia have created a museum made entirely from plastics to convince people to rethink their habits and say no to single-use bags and bottles.

The outdoor exhibition in the town of Gresik in east Java took three months to assemble and was made up of more than 10,000 plastic waste items, from bottles and bags to sachets and straws, all collected from polluted rivers and beaches.

The centrepiece is a statue called "Dewi Sri", a goddess of prosperity widely worshiped by the Javanese. Her long skirt is made from single-use sachets of household items.

The exhibition has received more than 400 visitors since it opened early last month.

The museum's founder Prigi Arisandi said the museum aims to send out a message to the public calling them to stop the use of single-use plastic.

People should stop consuming single-use plastic because it will pollute the ocean, which is also Indonesia’s source of food, he added.

The plastic problem is particularly acute in Indonesia, an archipelago nation that ranks second only behind China for its volume of plastics that end up in the seas./.

VNA