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In Indonesia and abroad, there is less and less tolerance to the smell of burning plastic, the toxic residue it produces and the mountains of plastic trash on roads, in waterways and on reefs and ocean floors. Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo has set a goal to eliminate the use of plastic bags in his city within the next 12 months, with a range of measures including incentives and possible sanctions for retailers.

In Bali, the tourism-driven economy has helped focus attention on the ugly impact of pollution, yet the little island’s 3.5 million inhabitants still produce about 5,000 tons of garbage per day. Most of this is organic, but Bali’s plastic waste alone is estimated to be between 600 and 750 tons, or 167 large truckloads a day.

Recently, collaboration between the Bali outlet of a Indonesian retail giant Hypermart and a local environmental group has provided one simple, comprehensive model for other retailers and their customers to follow.

HyperGreen, a practical initiative designed to raise awareness about the environment and reduce plastic waste, includes point-of-purchase information, posters and inexpensive, reusable cloth bags offered for sale to customers. Staff training and regular announcements are also part of the program designed by the Bali Cantik Tanpa Plastik Campaign (SNTP), or Say No to Plastic, for Hypermart’s Kuta Galleria Mall outlet.

This Hypermart is part of the massive Matahari group, Indonesia’s second-largest retailer, with more than 80 Matahari department stores, 40 Hypermarts and 265 Foodmarts around Indonesia, so a lot of eyes are on the campaign.

SNTP is not an official organization, just a determined group of individuals from around the world who love Bali and wanted to get involved in cleaning up the island. The campaign team — six Indonesians including four Balinese, two Australians, an American and a German — have had experience working on other national and international environment and social-change campaigns.

Their aim is simple: to reduce single-use plastic bags and educate the public on the environmental impacts of plastic.

According to SNTP spokeswoman Alex Ryan, in the campaign’s first month, HyperGreen saw a 50 percent reduction in the volume of plastic bags used by Hypermart. “That’s around one ton of plastic that did not enter landfill. A success already,” she said.

For customers who want to help, inexpensive cloth bags with the slogan “I’m HyperGreen, I bring my own bag!” are available at Hypermart.

“So far, bringing your own bag that can be reused again and again is the most effective and practical way that an individual can help reduce plastic bag use and the negative impacts of plastic waste on the environment,” Ryan said.

“SNTP encourages a levy on plastic bags to discourage consumers from using plastic bags, as well as incentive programs that reward those who refuse plastic and bring their own bags. We also work with communities on plastic-waste reduction and prevention.”

Ni Nyoman Erawati, the general manager of Hypermart at Kuta Galleria, said SNTP helped management and staff realize that one of the main sources of the plastic waste all over the island was the plastic shopping bags they offered customers every day.

“Most of these bags end up in open landfill, waterways, canals, rivers, gardens, rice fields and the sea,” Ni said.

After calculating that 4,300 plastic bags distributed daily to customers cost the store more than Rp 190 million ($20,710) per year, the Hypermart Bali store realized the financial incentive in reducing that number.

The goal of the HyperGreen campaign is to change people’s behavior. Hypermart encourages shoppers to bring their own bags wherever they shop — not just to the retailer — and to refuse single-use plastic bags wherever they go. In Hypermart, smart reminder tags and signs at each checkout ask customers if they have remembered to bring their bag. Trained checkout staff talk to customers about why they shouldn’t use plastic while their purchases are packed.

HyperGreen will run for at least six months and be integrated into many of the Kuta store’s activities. There are animations displayed on large-screen TVs on sale within the store, field trips by Hypermart checkout staff to clean up illegal trash dumps in Bali wetlands, and a poster campaign featuring customers using HyperGreen bags.

Creative advertising specialist and campaign team member Noviana Kusumawardhani said Hypermart was making the most of the opportunity.

“The SNTP process of creating this campaign is based on sound strategic thinking. They’ve put it together methodically and with great creativity,” Noviana said.

Meanwhile, SNTP is urging the business sector to become more active in environmental causes.

Antipollution legislation is relatively weak in Indonesia as opposed to abroad. Handing out disposable plastic bags is now banned or taxed in more than 40 countries around the world, including Bangladesh, China, Hong Kong, Ireland and Taiwan.

“The idea of introducing a ‘user pays’ system for plastic bags is not a new one, and it is a proven and effective system that really works, as opposed to a ban, which has dubious benefits,” Ryan said.

“The idea is not to tax the poor, but more to generate consumer awareness and then responsibility over our consumption habits.”

Replacing an environmentally unfriendly single-use plastic bag with a biodegradable one, however, will not transform consumer habits. A biodegradable bag still ends up in landfill where, despite the myth, it will not decompose because it is compressed with other trash.

Other leading retailers, such as Bali’s Hardy’s Group, are already seeking guidance from SNTP. In January, Hardy’s invited group representatives to brief a business gathering of all their major suppliers on the campaign and the impact of plastic on the environment. Bali TV and Heartline Radio Station 92.2 will both broadcast SNTP community service announcements in the coming weeks.