Indonesia Supports Global Agenda to End Plastic Waste

Head of the Standardization Agency for Environmental and Forestry Instruments of the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, Ary Sudijanto/ANTARA/HO-Ministry of Environment and Forestry, LHK

JAKARTA - The Indonesian government provides full support for the global agenda to end plastic waste that pollutes land and seas.

"Indonesia is implementing a policy to combat plastic waste and pollution," Head of the Environmental and Forestry Instrument Standardization Agency of the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) Ary Sudijanto said, reported by ANTARA, Thursday, October 19.

The Ministry of Environment and Forestry revealed that as much as 80 percent of the waste in Indonesia's seas comes from land activities and 30 percent of it is plastic waste.

Based on data from the National Action Plan for Handling Marine Waste, Indonesia was able to reduce 35.36 percent of plastic waste in the sea from 615,675 tonnes in 2018 to only 408,885 tonnes in 2022.

Referring to the latest research by Meijer et.al, he said, in 2021 the plastic waste leaking into the sea will be much reduced compared to Jambeck et.al's research in 2015.

Indonesia's position then changed from previously being the second largest contributor of plastic waste, he said, to becoming the fifth contributor behind the Philippines, India, Malaysia, and China.

"Indonesia is implementing a national action plan to eradicate marine litter with a target of reducing it by 70 percent by 2024," said Ary.

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In the 61st annual forum of the Asian-African Legal Consultative Organization (AALCO) in Nusa Dua, Bali, on October 16, 2023, Indonesia highlighted several important issues that must be addressed in negotiations such as the definition of plastic pollution, the scope of the full life cycle of plastic, primary plastic, complex plastics, both chemical and polymeric, and implementation steps.

Apart from that, Indonesia also prioritizes waste management through strengthening capacity and capability by moving from a linear approach to a circular approach (3R-EPR-circular economy) through the principle of reduction through recycling or recovery of sources and resources.