Traders Complain of Accumulating Waste at Sunter Temporary Disposal Site, North Jakarta, as Customers Avoid Area

Traders around the temporary disposal site (TPS) in RW 09 Sunter Jaya, Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta, specifically on Jalan Sunter Kemayoran, are complaining about accumulating waste. Customers have become reluctant to visit the area due to the massive piles of rubbish which are emitting unpleasant odours.

Aswal (35), the owner of a motorcycle wash business near the disposal site, stated that the waste piles occasionally overflow onto the road. His customers have frequently complained about the pungent smell from the site while having their vehicles washed at his establishment, which is located right next to the accumulation point.

“A customer asked, ‘what is that smell?’ referring to the waste from next door. They even had to wear two masks at once,” he said. This situation has caused his customer numbers to drop drastically over the past month. Typically, on weekends, his business handles 40 to 50 motorcycles, but since the waste began accumulating, even finding 20 customers has become difficult. “If you ask if it has decreased, it certainly has. This wash business has been much worse for over a month; it has plummeted significantly,” Aswal added.

Similar complaints were voiced by Yanto (40), a plant trader near the disposal site. He admitted that the smell of the waste and the abundance of flies have made buyers unwilling to visit his shop. The accumulation of waste has been ongoing since before the Eid al-Fitr holidays and is increasingly disrupting the business activities of local residents.

“People are not interested in shopping here because the location is near the rubbish and it smells very bad,” said Yanto. He noted that several customers have complained about the odour before ultimately cancelling their purchases. In addition to the loss of customers, he mentioned that some of the plants for sale have been damaged due to being swarmed by flies.