Now That's Recycling! Burning Imported Plastic Waste To Cook Tofu (& Spread Dioxin) In Indonesia

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A commercial tofu kitchen in Tropodo, Indonesia. The tofu is processed in boilers fueled by burning plastic.Credit...Ulet Ifansasti for The New York Times

Black smoke billows from smokestacks towering above the village. The smell of burning plastic fills the air. Patches of black ash cover the ground. It’s another day of making tofu. More than 30 commercial kitchens in Tropodo, a village on the eastern side of Indonesia’s main island, Java, fuel their tofu production by burning a mix of paper and plastic waste, some of it shipped from the United States after Americans dumped it in their recycling bins.

The backyard kitchens produce much of the area’s tofu, an inexpensive and high-protein food made from soy that is an important part of the local diet. But the smoke and ash produced by the burning plastic has far-reaching and toxic consequences. Testing of eggs laid by chickens in Tropodo, a village of 5,000 people, found high levels of several hazardous chemicals including dioxin — a pollutant known to cause cancer, birth defects and Parkinson’s disease — according to a report released this week by an alliance of Indonesian and international environmental groups.

The dioxin found in Tropodo is the end product in a chain of malfeasance, carelessness and governmental neglect. “They start the burning early in the morning and go until evening,” said Karnawi, 84, who lives near seven of the plastic-burning commercial kitchens. “It happens every day and the smoke is always in the air. For me, it’s difficult to breathe.”

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The burning of plastic pollutes the air and food. It creates dioxin and other toxic chemicals.Credit...Ulet Ifansasti for The New York Times

The amount of foreign waste coming to Indonesia soared two years ago after China halted trash imports. In East Java, 11 paper mills operate south of Surabaya, Indonesia’s second-largest city, and import waste paper for recycling. Some unscrupulous foreign waste handlers dump unwanted plastic on the developing world by including as much as 50 percent plastic in their supposed paper shipments, Ms. Yuyun said. Local companies profit by accepting the shipments.

Much of the plastic is unwanted, low-grade material and Indonesia has no good way to dispose of it. After removing the best materials for recycling, most companies send their remaining waste to Bangun, a village known for its trash pickers who hunt for items of value and material worth recycling. In Bangun, piles of trash, some more than 15 feet high, fill every vacant bit of land. About 2,400 people live in the village and almost every family is involved in the waste business.

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A truck dumps imported plastic waste in Bangun village, some of which is destined for the tofu kitchens.Credit...Ulet Ifansasti for The New York Times

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