Enviro News Asia, Padang Pariaman – The Ministry of Environment/Environmental Control Agency (KLH/BPLH) continued to strengthen concrete steps toward environmental recovery by amplifying the Ecological Repentance Movement and a two billion tree planting initiative. Minister of Environment/Head of BPLH Moh. Jumhur Hidayat, joined by regional government, the private sector, and educational institutions, led a tree planting action at the West Sumatra Maritime Polytechnic campus in Padang Pariaman, aimed at building ecological awareness among the younger generation while rehabilitating damaged nature.
Minister Jumhur affirmed that the Ecological Repentance Movement is a moral call for all elements of society to acknowledge past mistakes in exploiting nature, commit to not repeating environmental damage, and begin taking real corrective action.
“Those who hold power, use their power. Those with intellect, use their intellect. Those with influence, use their influence,” Minister Jumhur said.
He positioned environmental recovery as a cross-sectoral responsibility demanding active participation from every individual and group, from simple steps such as keeping rivers clean and managing daily waste to large-scale tree planting. KLH/BPLH is also preparing strategic policy on industrial sector waste management, including the imminent rollout of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), under which producers generating plastic packaging, including for food products, have expressed readiness to contribute to waste reduction through designated funding allocations.
As concrete proof of multi-party collaboration, KLH/BPLH handed over 15 kilograms of Ketapang Kencana seeds, while PT Semen Padang contributed 3,300 mangrove seedlings and PT PLN’s West Sumatra Distribution Main Unit donated fruit tree seedlings.
The West Sumatra Maritime Polytechnic also received appreciation for its strong commitment to building a Humanist, Smart, Sustainable, Eco-Friendly Campus (HSSEC) concept, having introduced circular economy innovations including used cooking oil management, organic waste composting, and maggot cultivation.
West Sumatra Governor Mahyeldi Ansharullah expressed hope that the synergy would become a role model for other regions, noting that the provincial government has already set a policy requiring provincial government offices and schools to manage their own waste internally. “What has been implemented at the West Sumatra Maritime Polytechnic proves that waste can be transformed into a blessing through maggot cultivation, composting, and other innovations. Hopefully this can be an example for other regions in West Sumatra,” he said.
KLH/BPLH is confident that the Ecological Repentance Movement approach can shift the public paradigm, making environmental conservation not merely an obligation but a form of moral responsibility and humanity’s act of redemption toward nature. The two billion tree target represents a concrete expression of that repentance, a recovery effort expected to repair damaged ecosystems, strengthen national climate resilience, and bequeath a balanced and sustainable earth to future generations. (*)
