Jakarta is reassessing its waste management system following repeated landslides at the Bantargebang landfill, the capital’s primary disposal site for nearly four decades. Authorities are promoting household waste sorting, expanding refuse-derived fuel (RDF) processing and planning additional waste-to-energy plants to reduce the pressure on the site. The strategy reflects a broader shift towards decentralised waste management and stronger environmental oversight after the facility reached capacity and safety concerns intensified.
According to reporting by ANTARA, Jakarta Governor Pramono Anung has urged residents to adopt routine waste sorting at home as part of a long-term effort to reduce the volume of rubbish transported to Bantargebang. Environment Minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq described the landfill’s 37-year lifespan and accumulation of around 80 million tonnes of waste as evidence of deeper structural weaknesses in the city’s waste management system.
The warning follows a landslide in early March that led the Jakarta Provincial Government to close Zone 4A of the landfill. The collapse affected 13 people and caused seven deaths. Previous incidents have also occurred, including a 2003 landslide that reached nearby residential areas and another in 2026 when Zone 3 collapsed and buried dozens of scavengers, resulting in two fatalities.
Household Waste Sorting Becomes a Central Policy Priority
To reduce the daily burden on the remaining landfill zones, Jakarta is intensifying programmes that encourage residents to separate waste at source. The approach is considered a key element of the city’s long-term strategy to cut landfill volumes while strengthening community participation in waste management.
Households are encouraged to separate waste into four categories:
- Biodegradable waste: Organic materials that can be processed into compost.
- Recyclable waste: Materials such as plastics, paper and metals that can be channelled to recycling systems or waste banks.
- Hazardous household waste (B3): Items containing toxic or hazardous substances.
- Residual waste: Materials that cannot be recycled and must be disposed of at final processing facilities.
Community-based initiatives are already underway. Gubernatorial Regulation Number 77 of 2020 established Community Waste Management Units (BPS RW) at neighbourhood level, which have been implemented progressively since 2021. These units coordinate local sorting programmes, recycling activities and organic waste processing.
By 2025, Jakarta’s Environmental Agency recorded 2,755 BPS RW units across the city, with 2,351 categorised as active. These initiatives support waste sorting within neighbourhood associations, the application of reduce, reuse, recycle (3R) practices and the establishment of local waste banks.
The programmes have contributed to gradual behavioural change. By December 2025, 236,494 households were separating waste, representing 11.47% of households and slightly exceeding the government’s quarterly target. During the same year, 2,083 active waste banks collectively reduced waste by about 10,004 tonnes.
RDF Facilities Expand Waste Processing Capacity
Infrastructure improvements are also part of Jakarta’s response. The Rorotan RDF plant in North Jakarta began operating on 10 March 2026 with an initial processing capacity of around 300 tonnes per day, with plans to scale up to 1,000 tonnes daily. The facility converts non-recyclable waste into fuel that can be used in industrial processes.
The city also operates an RDF facility at Bantargebang with a capacity of about 800 tonnes per day and the Merah Putih waste-to-energy plant, which processes around 100 tonnes per day. Combined with other processing measures, Jakarta estimates that the system could manage between 6,700 and 7,150 tonnes of waste daily.
Urban planning observer Sugiyanto said the Rorotan facility reflects a precautionary approach to environmental management. Meanwhile, M Zulfikar Dachlan, Executive Director of the Indonesia Public Policy and Economic Studies (IPPES), argued that the plant’s operation should proceed despite objections from nearby residents.
Environmental Controls and Community Oversight
Concerns from residents near the Rorotan plant focus primarily on potential odours, pollution and broader environmental impacts. In response, authorities have introduced several mitigation measures, including transporting waste only in enclosed compactor trucks to prevent leaks and smells along transport routes.
The facility has also upgraded its air pollution control system. Equipment installed includes cyclones, baghouse filters, wet scrubbers, activated carbon filters and wet electrostatic precipitators, alongside multiple induced draft fans and chimneys designed to control emissions safely.
Despite these upgrades, residents say occasional odours remain. Wahyu Andre Maryono, head of the Shinano JGC Cluster neighbourhood association, noted that faint smells still appear intermittently. Air Quality Monitoring Stations have resumed operations, and residents are participating in oversight through a joint monitoring team that will supervise plant operations for six months.
Waste-to-Energy Projects Planned to Reduce Landfill Pressure
The Jakarta Provincial Government is also proposing three additional waste-to-energy plants in Bantargebang, Rorotan and Sunter. These facilities could reduce waste entering Bantargebang by approximately 3,000 tonnes per day.
Officials estimate that once the new plants and expanded RDF processing reach full capacity, the city could handle between 6,500 and 7,000 tonnes of waste daily. Governor Pramono has suggested this could reduce the volume sent to Bantargebang by about 1,000 tonnes each day.
The renewed strategy highlights the need for systemic reform rather than reliance on a single landfill. Jakarta’s experience also reflects wider governance challenges in Indonesia, where policymakers are increasingly strengthening oversight frameworks across sectors, from environmental management to digital governance initiatives such as Indonesia’s efforts to strengthen national payment systems for digital growth and policy programmes focused on digital literacy and online safety.
For Jakarta, the repeated landslides at Bantargebang have reinforced a central lesson: waste reduction at the source remains essential. Without widespread household sorting and stronger waste processing infrastructure, even multiple treatment facilities may struggle to resolve the environmental and public health challenges associated with the capital’s growing waste volumes.
