Indonesia plans expanded producer responsibility for plastic waste

The Indonesian Ministry of Environment (KLH) is preparing new regulations to expand Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). This policy aims to encourage manufacturers to take back used product packaging to prevent waste from entering rivers, lakes, and oceans.

Deputy Minister of Environment Diaz Hendropriyono stated that plastic waste control must begin at the source on land. Alongside these regulations, the government is working to reactivate thousands of previously inactive waste management facilities to increase processing capacity before waste reaches water bodies.

In a separate initiative, the Ministry and the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) have launched the ‘Ecological Repentance’ (Tobat Ekologis) movement. Minister of Environment Jumhur Hidayat emphasized that companies profiting from business activities must be held accountable for environmental impacts. The government intends to use a graduated enforcement approach, ranging from warnings to criminal prosecution and legal disputes, for companies that fail to meet environmental restoration obligations.