Jatiwaringin Landfill Fire Sounds Alarm on Urgency to End Open Dumping
A fire that has been raging for a week at the Jatiwaringin Final Disposal Site (TPA) in Tangerang Regency, Banten, has yet to be extinguished. The blaze is suspected to have originated from an area still operating under an open dumping system.
An investigation into the cause of the fire is currently underway by the Ministry of Environment/Bureau of Environmental Control (KLH/BPLH) and will proceed once the fire is fully extinguished. The Ministry’s Deputy for Environmental Law Enforcement, Irjen Rizal Irawan, stated that the ignition point was located outside the zone designated for controlled landfilling. “The area that caught fire is outside the controlled landfill zone,” Rizal explained.
In response to the incident, the KLH is scheduling a major evaluation of 390 landfill sites across Indonesia, set to commence in early August 2026. “The evaluation will start on 1 August. All 390 TPA will be assessed to determine which are compliant and which are not,” he asserted. Rizal noted that the Jatiwaringin TPA had already received administrative sanctions from the KLH in 2025 for poor management. Alongside the sanctions, the ministry instructed the regional government to implement a controlled landfill system. “From last year until now, the regency government has been working on controlled landfilling. It turns out that over a year, they have only managed to complete 5 or 6 hectares. We understand that covering the total 33-hectare area is impossible in just one year,” Rizal said.
The Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) stated that the Jatiwaringin case serves as a critical reminder of the importance of stopping open dumping. Wahyu Eka Styawan, Walhi Nasional’s Campaigner for Just Urban Affairs, said that methane continuously produced in open dumping systems, combined with the accumulation of organic waste mixed with other types, makes fires like the one at Jatiwaringin not just a possibility but an inevitability. “As long as methane is continuously produced in open dumping systems and organic waste piles up mixed with other types, fires like this are not just a possibility, but a certainty,” Wahyu said. Walhi believes the necessary immediate action is to cover the waste piles with soil to cut off the oxygen supply and suppress methane gas release.
Coordinating Minister for Food, Zulkifli Hasan, had previously warned about the dangers of open dumping. He has requested all regional heads to stop open dumping at all TPA in 2026. Speaking at the 2026 National Waste Management Coordination Meeting in February, Zulhas urged regional leaders to find solutions for waste management as open dumping would be halted. “Almost all regencies and cities are experiencing a waste emergency. The Minister of Environment said open dumping TPA must be closed in 2026,” Zulhas stated. He emphasised the need for swift solutions due to the diminishing availability of land for waste disposal. Zulhas also mentioned that some regional heads had requested extensions to continue open dumping this year, but he insisted the matter could no longer be delayed. “Now there are those asking for a postponement until November, others until June. Therefore, I invite all regents and governors, let us work hard. Usually, if Indonesia is pushed, it can succeed. We must stop open dumping TPA,” he concluded.