The Princess Of The Dump

Resa Boenard has dedicated her life empowering children growing up on the largest landfill in Southeast Asia.

- Maddie Manwaring

The Bantar Gebang Integrated Waste Disposal Site (Bantar Gebang) located in Bekasi, West Java, is the final disposal site for municipal solid waste generated in Jakarta. Every day around 1.300 trucks deliver more than 7.000 tonnes of waste from the city. Excavators and bulldozers balance precariously on the towering mountains of garbage, some of which are up to 40 meters tall, as a row of trucks line up waiting to dump another load of waste on the pile. Covering 110 hectares and with a capacity of 49 million tonnes, Bantar Gebang is the largest landfill in Southeast Asia and is evidence of large-scale plastic pollution and poor waste management. Currently the site is estimated to be at 39 million tonnes, and the Jakarta Environment Agency predicts the landfill will reach capacity by 2021.

Scattered amongst the mountains are rows of houses, belonging to the more than 3.000 families who live and work on the landfill. Known as scavengers or waste-pickers, these workers have the never-ending job of sorting the waste. They sell plastic, paper, metals and glass for small amounts of money. Life on the landfill is difficult and workers, including children, suffer from countless illnesses, injuries and sometimes even death caused by harmful or contaminated waste, a lack of protective gear, and workplace accidents. The hardships faced by those making their living on the landfill have contributed to severe mental health issues that are left untreated and have led to suicides. It is a life Resa Boenard knows all too well.