Admiring Batik and

Caring for the Environment

Seeing see a long row of beautiful batik being worked on has become a source of reflection for all of us. Of course, this method brings forward consequences on quality and price. Affordable price for the consumer while also brings profit to the producer is a mutual desire. Even though alternatives natural coloring is available, in the business realm profit is still a priority, and synthetic color that’s much cheaper and affordable is still one major option. When the natural colored product is sold at the markets, the price will be much higher. Furthermore, natural coloring process requires multiple immersion to create the desired color.

To what extent batik artisans manage their coloring and wax waste? It’s not a secret that batik artisans color their batik with synthetic color, one of which is Naphthol. Naphthol, a compound with the formula C10H8O; molar mass: 144,17 g/mol; water solubility: 0,74 kg/m3; boiling point: 285°C; density: 1,22 g/cm³; ChEBI ID: 10432. This material belongs to B3 (Bahan Beracun dan Berbahaya / Toxic and Dangerous Substances) materials. This type of material is hazardous for humans, animals, and the environment’s health. Naphthol can wipe out underwater organisms because of its ability to change biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) value on the water. Therefore, solid or liquid waste that contains B3 needs extra measures so it can be decomposed in such manner that doesn’t harm the environment. According to the Government Regulation Number 101 Year 2014 about Toxic and Dangerous Substances Waste Management, article 3 verse (1) ‘Anyone who creates B3 waste, must manage the B3 waste that was created’.

World Batik Summit 2011 in Jakarta had a common declaration, on article 5 stating that Indonesian Batik industry must be based on the protection of nature and the environment. Also, research on a large amount of traditional natural coloring supply is critical to be undertaken (http://www.mongabay.co.id/2012/12/28/ayo-kini-saatnya-berbatik-ramah-lingkungan/). Dr. Ir. Edia Rahayuningsih, M.S., a lecturer and researcher on Chemical Engineering at Gadjah Mada University, has done a research on Indigofera plants as a coloring substitute for Naphthol, the result suggests that Indigoferas can be used to substitute blue coloring (https://ugm.ac.id/id/berita/7678-edia:.kurangi.pencemaran.hidupkan.kembali.pewarna.alam). Blue coloring created from the resulting powder has intensity up to 40%, meanwhile, blue coloring created from the status quo method only has the intensity of 15%. Even though using the developed process, it only requires 3-6 times of immersion (https://ugm.ac.id/id/berita/7678-edia:.kurangi.pencemaran.hidupkan.kembali.pewarna.alami.).

Providing know-how to batik artisans on the topic of environment preservation and the usage of protective suits during the coloring process is critical, in order to not to be exposed to chemicals in a close range. If contacting with chemicals was often made, especially B3 chemicals, it could cause long-term illnesses such as skin cancer.

Let us appreciate batik and other traditional fabrics that were made with a long process. Because to get a beautiful piece of batik, the environment is the trade-off. Let’s still admire batik by caring for the environment. *SAP