Waste Management

THE collapse of a massive trash pile at the Bantargebang Integrated Waste Processing Site in Bekasi, West Java, which claimed seven lives, highlights the repeated failure to address garbage management issues. What happened on March 8, 2026, was not an accident brought on by heavy rain or an unstable pile structure. It was a reflection of the flaws in the waste management system, as it still relies on outdated open-dumping methods.

The practice of dumping waste in open land without adequate technical processing remains the dominant method in many regions. This method risks polluting the soil, water, and air, and it creates mountains of garbage.

Of the approximately 550 final waste processing sites in Indonesia, hundreds still use this system. Open dumping accounts for 64.02 percent of the 11.61 million tons of trash that reach landfills annually.

We should have learned from the disaster two decades ago. In 2005, a massive garbage pile in Leuwigajah, Cimahi, West Java, collapsed, killing more than 100 people and burying two nearby villages. The incident heightened public awareness of the dangers of haphazard waste management. Over time, however, outdated practices have returned, as if the tragedy had never occurred.

The open dumping method should have been abandoned after the Waste Management Law was enacted in 2008. Unfortunately, the government never made a serious effort to stop it. As long as the “collect, transport, and dispose” system remains in place, final processing sites will always end up as giant warehouses for municipal garbage.

The problem becomes even more complicated as the amount of trash we produce continues to increase. Throughout 2025, the national waste volume is estimated to have reached around 25 million tons. Meanwhile, our waste management capacity is much lower, at only about 8.9 million tons. This imbalance causes landfills to quickly reach full capacity, resulting in garbage that keeps piling up.

The government also needs to adjust its approach, which places too much responsibility for waste management on the community. The “refuse, reduce, reuse, recycle, rot” (RRRR) campaign, which urges people to reject single-use items, reduce consumption, reuse, recycle, and compost organic waste, is important for changing public behavior. However, households are not the only source of trash. Industries are also major producers of garbage through their various single-use products and packaging.

This means that the responsibility for managing trash cannot be placed solely on consumers. The industrial sector must take responsibility for the entire life cycle of their products, from production to disposal. This responsibility cannot be achieved simply by reducing plastic packaging. Manufacturers must also recycle their product waste, such as by offering incentives to consumers who return used packaging.

The Waste Management Law and its derivative regulations stipulate that manufacturers must create roadmaps for garbage reduction. In reality, however, implementation remains weak due to a lack of strict oversight and enforcement of regulations. Without a strong commitment from the government to hold industries accountable for their waste, trash will continue to pile up into mountains in landfills, waiting to collapse again.