To Promote the Circular Bioeconomy, a UNSRI Community Service Team Trains PKK Women in Meranjat II Village to Process Kemplang Waste into Liquid Organic Fertilizer

The Community Service Team from Sriwijaya University (UNSRI), led by Dr. Meitry Firdha Tafarini, S.P., together with faculty members and students, organized an empowerment program based on the Circular Bio Economy (CBE) concept in Meranjat II Village, South Indralaya Subdistrict, Ogan Ilir Regency. Funded through UNSRI’s 2026 Fiscal Year DIPA budget, this initiative targeted the local Women’s Family Welfare Development Group (PKK) to address environmental issues caused by the massive kemplang processing industry in the village.

As a center for the kemplang agroindustry, Meranjat II Village generates organic fishery waste—including fish heads, bones, and innards, as well as tapioca scraps—amounting to 500 to 1,000 kilograms per day. Until now, open-air waste disposal has caused air pollution due to the release of methane and hydrogen sulfide gases, while also threatening the quality of the surrounding community’s groundwater; thus, appropriate technology is needed to transform this source of pollution into biomaterials with economic value.

As part of the program’s implementation, the UNSRI community service team conducted awareness campaigns on the dangers of waste pollution and installed a modified 60-liter polyethylene (PE) plastic composting drum designed to be airtight for an odor-free anaerobic fermentation process. A total of 16 women members of the PKK (Family Welfare Movement) were trained directly to process approximately 30 kilograms of fish waste using the Effective Microorganisms 4 (EM4) bio-activator and molasses as a carbon source, which was then incubated for 14 to 21 days.

Evaluations through pre- and post-tests showed a significant increase in environmental literacy and technical skills among the participants. Whereas previously 100 percent of participants lacked access to processing facilities and were accustomed to disposing of kemplang waste into drains, after the training, all participants were able to independently carry out the waste fermentation process, with a projected production capacity of approximately 20 liters of pure Liquid Organic Fertilizer (POC) per cycle.

Moving forward, the UNSRI community service team will continue to provide guidance on packaging derivative products into labeled PET bottles as well as training in business cash book management. This collaboration is expected to lay the foundation for the establishment of a “Circular Business Unit” that not only reduces environmental pollution in the village but also lowers household expenses on chemical fertilizers and creates a sustainable secondary source of income for the women of the Meranjat II Village PKK.