Cianjur, UPI

Eighteen young members of the Kayambang Cooperative in Bojong Picung Village, Cianjur Regency, took part in a two-day plastic waste processing training held on 29–30 July 2026. The activity was organized by a Community Service Team from a higher education institution as a concrete form of support for the national program to restore the Citarum River, widely known as Citarum Harum.

The program team was chaired by Prof. Dr. Ir. H. R. Aam Hamdani, M.T., IPM., with members Prof. Dr. Bambang Darmawan, M.M., Asep Hadian Sasmita, S.Pd., M.Pd., and Dr. Sudjani, M.Pd. The training focused on the use of appropriate technology in the form of a plastic bottle crusher, with a dual purpose: reducing pollution in the Citarum River Basin (DAS) while increasing the economic value of waste for local residents.

The Head of the Community Service Team, Prof. Dr. Ir. H. R. Aam Hamdani, M.T., IPM., said the program was designed not to stop at theory alone. “We did not only provide theory, but also technical mentoring through to business simulation, so that the cooperative’s youth can independently manage plastic waste into high-value products,” he said in his opening remarks.

The training material was delivered in three sessions over two days. On the first day, Dr. Sudjani, M.Pd. opened the series with material on environmental conservation and the impact of plastic waste pollution, including the dangers of microplastics and the 3R principle (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle). This session was found to increase participants’ understanding by 35 percent, based on pre-test and post-test results administered by the organizers. The second session on the same day covered environmentally friendly entrepreneurship, while the second day was devoted to hands-on practice operating the crusher machine.

Looking ahead, the community service team and the management of the Kayambang Cooperative have agreed on several sustainability measures, ranging from institutional strengthening and periodic remote mentoring, to plans for product diversification such as recycled-plastic paving blocks and ecobricks. The program received full support from the Bojongpicung Village Government and the Cianjur Regency Environmental Agency.

The Citarum Harum program itself is a national initiative to restore the water quality and ecosystem of the Citarum River, which flows through West Java. Community empowerment through plastic waste processing is one of the important pillars of this effort, and the activity in Bojong Picung Village is expected to serve as a model that can be replicated in other villages along the Citarum River Basin. (DN)