5 Microplastic Rain Facts In Jakarta: The Cause And Impact On Health

Illustration of rain in Jakarta (Photo: Doc. Antara)

YOGYAKARTA Rainwater in Jakarta is said to contain Microplastic particles originating from human activities in urban areas. Check the facts of microplastic rain in the following article.

Based on a study conducted by the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) since 2022, rainwater in Jakarta has been contaminated with dangerous microplastic particles.

Microplastics are micro-sized pieces or plastic particles. This pasticel pollutes the environment widely (water, air, soil).

"This microplastic comes from the synthesis of clothing, dust, vehicles and tires, the burning of plastic waste, and plastic degraphation in open spaces," said BRIN researcher Muhammad Reza Cordova, quoted from Antara, Monday, October 17, 2025.

Microplastic particles mixed with rainwater in Jakarta are generally in the form of synthesis fiber and small fragments of plastic, especially polymers such as polyesters, nylons, polyethylene, to polybutadienes from vehicle tires.

The following is a recent summary of the facts of rainwater mixed with microplastic particles in Jakarta:

Reza said the phenomenon of microplastic rain occurred because these micro-sized particles had reached the atmosphere.

He explained that microplastics can be lifted into the air through street dust, combustion smoke, and industrial activity and then carried away by the wind and fell back together with the rain. This process is known as the atmospheric microplatic deposition.

"This plastic cycle does not stop at sea, it rises to the sky, goes around with the wind, then rains again to the earth," said Reza.

Microplastic particles polluting rainwater can be harmful to health. Microplastic particles are very small, even more subtle than ordinary dust, so that humans can inhale or enter the body through water and food.

"What is toxic is not rainwater, but microplastic particles in it, because it contains additive chemicals or absorbs other pollutants," said Reza.

Rainy water contaminated with microplastic particles has the potential to contaminate surface and sea water sources, which eventually enter food Rantau.

To prevent contamination, routine research and monitoring of air quality and rainwater are needed, improving the management of plastic waste upstream, and encouraging the textile industry to implement a filtration system in washing machines to withstand the release of synthesis fiber.

The finding of microplastic particles in rainwater in Jakarta does not necessarily mean that these particles mean they come from the capital, but can also come from other areas. This phenomenon is known as the transport pollutant.

The functionality of the BMKG Meteorology and Geophysics Agency, Dwi Atmoko, explained that the direction of the wind plays a major role in the movement of pollutants in the atmosphere. With the dry season conditions and the wind blowing from east to Southeast, microplastic particles polluting rain in Jakarta could come from other areas in that direction.

It should be understood that microplastics in an area do not always come from the area itself. This phenomenon is called the transport poll, where the pollutant particles are carried away by the wind in one area to another, "said Dwi in a discussion at the City Hall of DKI Jakarta on Friday, October 24, 2025.

The phenomenon of microplastic rain that occurs in Jakarta is not only a matter of the environment, but also a serious health issue.

"Plastics is not only a environmental problem, but also health. In it there are dangerous additive ingredients that can trigger hormonal disturbances and increase the risk of cancer," said Professor of the Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Sciences (FPIK) IPB University, Prof., Etty Riani.

That's information about the fact of micro sure rain in Jakarta. Get news updates of other options only on VOI.ID.