PSEL Must Be Part of an Integrated Waste Management System
Waste management cannot rely solely on the development of downstream processing facilities. A system must be built in an integrated manner, starting from waste reduction and sorting at the source to residue processing, including through Waste-to-Energy (PSEL) plants.
Environmental practitioner and Founder and CEO of Waste4Change, Mohamad Bijaksana Junerosano, stated that PSEL can be part of the waste management solution as long as it is positioned to process residue that can no longer be recycled or composted.
“Waste-to-energy and the circular economy can and must work together, provided that PSEL is positioned as a complement at the end of the system, not a replacement at the beginning,” Junerosano said in Jakarta on Monday.
According to him, an ideal waste management system begins with reduction and sorting at the source. Organic and inorganic waste are then processed according to their characteristics. Meanwhile, materials that can no longer be utilised become residue that can be handled through PSEL or landfill facilities.
He noted that integration across all links in the chain is vital, as failure at one stage can result in most waste returning to landfills.
“If one link in the chain breaks, for example, if sorting does not occur, the entire burden returns to the end of the system,” he said.
Junerosano estimates that PSEL should ideally handle approximately 30–40 per cent of the total waste generated. This portion primarily consists of residue that is no longer recyclable or compostable.
This approach is necessary to ensure that PSEL development does not disrupt the existing circular economy ecosystem, which includes waste banks, 3R-based waste processing sites (TPS3R), waste collectors, scavengers, and recycling businesses.
Therefore, he believes that contract design and regulation are crucial aspects of PSEL development. He argued that contracts should avoid ‘put or pay’ schemes involving high waste volume obligations.
Such schemes, he noted, could potentially force local governments to meet specific tonnage quotas, which could ultimately reduce the incentive to perform waste sorting.
“The obligation to sort at the source must remain strengthened. Materials that still have utility or economic value must first enter the recycling chain before their residue is handled by PSEL,” he said.
Junerosano cited the challenges of building an integrated waste management system in the Greater Bogor area as an example. The condition of the Galuga landfill, which has been overcapacity for years and suffered a major fire in early September 2026, indicates that waste management issues are not merely downstream problems.
“The biggest challenge is not just a lack of disposal space, but an unoptimised upstream system. Source sorting remains low, collection fleets are limited, and the entire burden accumulates at a single landfill,” he said.
He added that overloaded landfills increase environmental and safety risks, including the accumulation of methane gas, leachate, landfill landslides, and fires.
In the context of Greater Bogor, Junerosano believes a regional PSEL approach could be one option, where a single facility serves several adjacent regencies and cities.
A scheme involving Bogor City, Bogor Regency, and Depok could serve as an example of a cross-regional approach.
However, building PSEL facilities alone is insufficient to guarantee long-term system sustainability. The development of such facilities must be accompanied by technology transfer and capacity building for local human resources and regional-owned enterprises.
Without this process, regions risk remaining dependent on foreign vendors or technology partners for the operation and maintenance of the facilities.
“PSEL is long-term infrastructure, spanning 20–25 years. Technical independence will determine whether PSEL becomes a strategic regional asset or a new burden,” he said.
Beyond technology, Junerosero emphasised the importance of the government preparing a ‘just transition’ for scavengers, waste collectors, and small-scale recyclers.
These groups have long performed the functions of sorting and reusing materials within the circular economy chain. He argued that the transformation of waste management should not eliminate the livelihoods of groups that are already part of the system.
With an integrated approach, PSEL can play a role in reducing the burden on landfills without taking over the functions of reduction, sorting, and recycling. Thus, PSEL becomes part of a waste management system from upstream to downstream.