Beach and sea clean up was done massively by police and locals on 23 February 2019 at Panggang Island to commemorate National Waste Awareness Day. Panggang Island, located in the cluster of islands called Thousand Island, is an area in Jakarta that is separated from the main land.

Divers Clean Action is a community that was invited to help in the sea clean up by the police department. Among the volunteers in DCA, I was lucky enough to get chosen to participate. Everyone involved in the activity, gathered at Ancol Harbor early in the morning. People were split into two boats, the DCA team got on the smaller one that was not crowded.

Arriving at Panggang Island, people changed into their wet suits, prepared their diving gears, and so on. Before starting the clean up, a small ceremony was held. Directions were given, on what people were to do and how the formation of divers was going to be. Symbolically, three people representing different role were given a rattan trash bin, underwater trash bag, and a wooden broom.

DCA had the instructions to be in front of the divers formation, which is why the DCA team was the one who went underwater first. Using a special bag that looks like a net, everyone collected trash they see. DCA prioritized collecting plastic over other trash.

The view underwater was devastating. People either saw the view as a house in the process of moving or a supermarket. Anything can be found. Tires, plastic spoon, plastic plates, ceramic and plastic cups, cans, a cupboard for dishes, dispenser, toys, and other things.

The time spent collecting trash underwater was limited only to the space of the net trash bag as well as the remaining air from the diving gear. When everyone surfaced, the trashes were collected together. They were then sorted out according to the type of trash, such as plastic, ceramic, and so on. After that, the trashes where weighted and was noted down for research purposes.