Waste Management Requires Total Reform, Economic Potential Reaches Rp 500 Trillion

In the midst of a waste management crisis, Indonesia is seen to have a significant opportunity to build a circular economy with potential reaching Rp 500 trillion per year, provided it is supported by comprehensive system reforms. CEO and founder of Waste4Change, Mohammad Bijaksana Junerosano, stated that the circular economy approach is key to escaping the linear system that has dominated resource management thus far. “Our current system is linear: take from nature, use, then discard. As a result, we create ‘new mountains’ in the form of waste,” he said during a media gathering for Earth Day commemorations on Monday (20/4/2026). In the circular economy concept, materials must be circulated as long as possible within the system so they do not become waste. However, he assessed that Indonesia is still lagging in building supporting infrastructure, particularly in the collection and material recovery stages. “Our collection and material recovery are still very lacking. Consequently, we continue to take new raw materials from nature,” he said. He referred to a Bappenas study which states that Indonesia’s circular economy potential can reach hundreds of trillions of rupiah per year. However, this potential has not been optimally exploited due to the weakness of the system. Bijaksana emphasised that solutions to waste problems cannot rely solely on technology. So far, public discourse has been too focused on technologies such as PSEL, waste banks, or TPS3R, without building a supporting ecosystem. “Technology is like a tree. But we forget to build the soil, water, and sunlight. The soil is regulation, the water is collaboration, and the sunlight is financing,” he said. He explained that an effective waste management ecosystem must encompass five main aspects: policy, law enforcement, operations, financing, and stakeholder participation. In addition, he highlighted the importance of a fair financing scheme, including through extended producer responsibility (EPR) mechanisms and waste service levies. According to him, waste management cannot entirely rely on the economic value of materials. The majority of waste requires processing costs, so there must be contributions from waste generators. “Around 80 percent of fixed costs must be covered. This is a public service, not a pure business,” he said.