DKI's Waste Sorting Programme Not Yet Optimal, Officers in Cilincing, North Jakarta, Still Working Repetitively
JAKARTA - Cart operators at the TPS 3R Kober in Semper Timur, Cilincing, North Jakarta, still have to re-sort household waste because some residents have not separated it by type.
Jeje (50), one of the cart operators at TPS 3R Kober, said the current waste sorting process is repetitive, from the household level to the temporary disposal site (TPS).
“If we encounter waste from residents that hasn’t been sorted, we sort it again. We sort it; previously, the process took a long time, sorting first, and only putting it into the cart once nothing more can be sorted,” said Jeje when met by Kompas.com at the location on Tuesday (12/5/2026).
“Organic waste we put into the cart. For the sorted waste, we put it into sacks, already separated,” he stated.
Jeje explained that the sorting process does not stop at the waste collector level.
Waste that is still mixed will be sorted again by sorters or scavengers at the TPS.
An officer at the TPS 3R Kober depo, Rudi, said that waste sorting is currently carried out at several points before the residue is sent to processing sites or final disposal sites.
“Actually, at home, it’s already directed and sorted. Then the cart operators sort it too. Scavengers sort it too,” he told Kompas.com on Tuesday.
He explained that separated inorganic waste will be put into bin tongs, then transported by truck to RDF Rorotan or Bantar Gebang.
“At TPS 3R, some still slip through to here. Yes, it’s just put into the residue,” he said.
According to Rudi, this situation occurs because not all residents are yet accustomed to sorting waste from home.
In addition, limitations in waste collection fleets also pose challenges.
He added that the longer organic waste is not collected, the more difficult the sorting process becomes.
Nevertheless, Rudi admitted to remaining optimistic about the waste sorting programme that has begun to be implemented by the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government.
“In a manner of speaking, the important thing is to improve at the grassroots level with the residents; we are always given continuous guidance like that,” he added.