The pristine Balinese beaches of the tropical paradise on Australia’s doorstep have been swamped by the worst tidal wave of trash the island has ever seen.
An epidemic of tourism overdevelopment is now threatening to permanently wreck the unspoiled idyll, with streets choked with traffic and holidaymakers, and garbage turning the sea into a sewer
Shocking footage this week revealed the tsumani of plastic waste washing ashore at the normally spectacular Pantai Kedonganan beach in Jimbaran, south of Kuta.
Thousands of volunteers worked for days to try to restore its natural beauty but the appalling scene is a sign of the huge cost the overdeveloped south of Bali is paying.
The world’s love affair with the Indonesian Island of the Gods is now coming at a very high price.
Sam Bencheghib, one of the founders of non-profit organisation Sungai Watch, posted stomach-churning video of ‘the worst trash wave I’ve ever seen’.
Mr Bencheghib’s disturbing footage showed the famed Jimbaran beach in a sickening state, awash with garbage, mostly plastic, as far as the eye could see.
Two live sea turtles were found hidden in the shoreline garbage by the clean up army, trapped under a mountain of plastic.
Shocking footage this week revealed the tsumani of plastic waste washing ashore in Bali
The normally spectacular Pantai Kedonganan beach in Jimbaran, south of Kuta, pictured, as tourists would hope to find it
Sam Bencheghib’s disturbing footage showed the famed Jimbaran beach in a sickening state, awash with garbage, mostly plastic, as far as the eye could see
Mr Bencheghib wrote he ‘called to our community for help, and Bali answered.’
Almost 3,000 people removed 66,000kg of tons of plastic from the beach between December 24 and January 5.
‘Every year, the trash wave gets bigger; our governments need to wake up and improve waste management infrastructure now,’ Mr Bencheghib said.
The heartbreaking sight is exhausting for the locals who have to deal with it – or face financial ruin if the tourists suddenly decide to stay away.
‘Bali residents and tourists alike are fed up with plastic beaches across Bali,’ admitted Sungai Watch co-Founder Kelly Bencheghib.
‘It is heartwarming to see close to 3,000 volunteers come together to help us clean the beach.’
In a sign of the times, most of the collected waste was just single-use plastic drinks cups, water bottles and sachets, coveringthe golden sand in a drab dark grey.
Sungai Watch was founded in 2020 by Mr Bencheghib with siblings Kelly and Gary to clean Bali’s rivers and stop plastic going into the ocean and washing up on the beaches.
The organisation of over 150 ‘river warriors’ collects, sorts, and recycles up to three tonnes of river plastic every day
Sungai Watch has already collected over 2,800,000kg of plastics, installed 300 barriers, cleaned 260 villages and organised 1,420 community cleanups.
The Sungai Watch website states, ‘By designing simple trash barriers and operating a collection, sorting and up-cycling system, we have created a scalable approach to tackling plastic pollution.’
‘We are on a mission to install 1,000 barriers throughout Indonesia’s most polluted rivers and expand Sungai Watch internationally.’
‘This isn’t just a local problem; it’s a crisis impacting all of Indonesia,’ Gary Bencheghib said.
Sungai Watch was founded in 2020 by Sam Bencheghib (pictured right) with his siblings Kelly and Gary to clean Bali’s rivers and stop plastic going into the ocean and washing up on the beaches
Sungai Watch has already collected over 2,800,000kg of plastics, installed 300 barriers, cleaned 260 villages and organised 1,420 community cleanups
The holiday island of Bali welcomed 6.3 million tourists in 2024, smashing its tourism targets and the target for 2025 is 6.5 million. Bali tourists are pictured
And it will potentially get worse.
‘The scale of this pollution is staggering, and it requires urgent action from individuals, businesses, and the government to address the root causes of plastic waste,’ Mr Bencheghib said.
The alarming images of the Jimbaran beach are light years away from the traditional tourist images of a spectacular, sun-kissed shoreline.
Visitors flock to the island to enjoy an ice cold Bintang as the sun sets over Kuta Beach, watch a traditional Kecak dance at the 1,000-year-old Uluwatu Temple, explore the rice terraces, and snap a selfie at the Ubud Monkey Forest.
But instead of the dream, the reality is garbage-strewn beaches and tourist-choked streets as a result of rampant overdevelopment and straining infrastructue
The Bali Sun reported the holiday island welcomed 6.3 million tourists in 2024, smashing its tourism targets, with the target for 2025 set for 6.5 million.
But the island is now in danger of killing its golden goose.
Last year, travel bible Fodor’s Travel put the idyllic Indonesian island on its 2025 ‘No List’.
‘Rapid, unchecked development spurred by overtourism is encroaching on Bali’s natural habitats, eroding its environmental and cultural heritage, and creating a “plastic apocalypse”,’ Fodor’s Travel wrote.
This ongoing struggle has forced local authorities to act.
They are looking to ban the construction of new hotels, villas, nightclubs and food and beverage businesses in Bali’s busiest areas for at least two years in a bid to control and limit the rapid influx of tourists.
The ban on the building of new hotels could be extended to 10 years, which will give Bali some much-needed breathing space.
The moratorium was due to be in place by October last year, but is still being finalised, the Bali Sun reported.
The Chairman of Bali Tourism Board (BTB), Ida Bagus Agung Partha Adnyana, said ‘The licensing moratorium in South Bali is needed to overcome several challenges that arise due to rapid development, especially in the hotel and accommodation sector.’
‘We understand that this step aims to maintain environmental balance, improve the quality of tourism, and encourage equitable development in Bali.’
In a further effort to address the negative impact of overtourism, a ‘tourist tax’ was introduced in February last year.
The Bali Sun reported the holiday island welcomed 6.3 million tourists in 2024, smashing its tourism targets, with the target for 2025 set for 6.5 million. Traffic in Canggu is pictured
The world’s love affair with the Island of the Gods is now coming at a very high price. Bali tourists are pictured
Tourists entering Bali are now required to pay IDR150,000 ($AUD15) in a bid to help preserve Bali’s culture and heritage and environment.
Funds received from the tax go towards environmental initiatives including waste management and cultural preservation programs.
Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry Secretary Ni Wayan Giri Adnyani said waste management programs were selected because, ‘If we can’t handle the waste well enough, it will cause a bad smell and damage the environment.’
With the moratorium on new hotels and the tourist tax, hopefully Bali’s ‘trash waves’ will be distant thing of the past – and the gods will once again smile on the island.
