As one of the campuses with a number of students ranging from tens of thousands of students, the UNNES campus of course produces a large amount of waste, whether it’s organic or inorganic waste. The large amount of waste generated is a concern for UNNES. Especially with the status of UNNES as a conservation campus, this waste problem is of course an important concern that cannot be ruled out.
As a conservation campus, UNNES is also surrounded by trees and various plants that grow to decorate the UNNES campus. With so many plants there, the amount of waste produced from leaves and grass also adds to the list of the amount of waste produced. This makes the amount of organic waste produced every day is not small and requires further handling.
Born from anxiety over the amount of organic waste produced, UNNES created an Integrated Waste Management Site (TPST). This TPST is also a manifestation of UNNES’ concern and seriousness in maintaining and conserving the environment. This TPST is an organic waste processing site that is managed and held directly by the UNNES Conservation Development Unit. This TPST is located in Gang Ki Ageng Gribik, Sekaran, Gunungpati, or opposite the Main Gate of UNNES.
TPST UNNES apart from collecting and processing waste from the UNNES campus environment also processes waste from the surrounding community. Initially, this waste is collected and then sorted and sorted between organic waste and inorganic waste or plastic waste. The organic waste that has been sorted is then processed into a product that is useful and has a sale value. The TPST also uses tools and machines that assist human work in processing the waste.
Some of these organic wastes are processed into compost. The method of processing and making compost is not much different from the method of making compost in general. The compost produced from waste processing at the TPST is then packaged and marketed to the public. Apart from being marketed, UNNES also plans to use the compost for campus personal use.
TPST not only processes waste into compost, but also uses waste to feed Maggot. This maggot is the larva of the Black Soldier Fly (BSF). Maggot was chosen as a media for processing organic waste because maggot has a high selling value and is much sought after. Maggot has a fairly high selling price because of its high protein content, which makes it very suitable for animal or pet feed. Maggot is usually sought after by buyers for fish, bird, chicken or other livestock feed.
By cultivating maggot at TPST, apart from being a medium for waste processing, it is also a promising business opportunity. Easy maintenance and a relatively short harvesting process make maggot production at TPST reach quite large amounts each month. This is directly proportional to the demand for maggot which is quite high on the market. The amount of maggot production will increase if lectures restart offline. This maggot is usually marketed in Semarang, Kendal and Salatiga.
With this TPST, organic waste in and around the campus has been successfully processed into products that have high selling value and become new business opportunities. This organic waste and household waste is no longer just a waste that has accumulated and is not useful. TPST can be said to be the right solution to the waste problem in UNNES. On the other hand, this TPST is also clear evidence of UNNES as a university with a conservation perspective.
