Environment Minister Admits Difficulty in Managing Marine Waste Due to Costs and Vast Territory

JAKARTA — Indonesia’s Environment Minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq has admitted the difficulties in managing marine and island waste due to the vast expanse of Indonesia’s seas. Additionally, the high costs of handling such waste pose significant barriers.

“If the waste is already in the sea, dealing with it becomes extremely expensive and chaotic. It cannot be incinerated or processed in certain ways because of the salt content, which can produce dioxin and furan—highly potent substances that emerge during burning,” he explained in Makassar on Sunday (5/4/2026).

Hanif noted that marine waste originates from land waste that flows into the ocean due to inadequate processing on land. Nationally, only about 25% of waste is processed, while around 60% reaches final disposal sites (TPA).

Thus, 40% remains scattered in the field and eventually flows into the sea. “The President has instructed that land waste be resolved by 2029. Meanwhile, the current national achievement is only 25% processed. So, we have 75% left to catch up on in the next three years. We will focus first on land to then address marine waste,” he stated.

Hanif acknowledged that marine and island waste issues remain unresolved tasks for the ministry. Nevertheless, this is a shared homework (PR) for the government from central to local levels.

“Marine waste cannot be solely burdened on governors or regents/mayors. So, we will take the most crucial handling steps, for example in Bali,” he said.