Indonesian govt to phase out single-use plastics by 2029

A scavenger collects used plastic bottles for recycling at Cipeucang landfill site in Serpong, South Tangerang, Banten, on Feb 28, 2020. - JP

JAKARTA (The Jakarta Post/Asia News Network): Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar said the government would start imposing a ban on single-use plastic products by the end of 2029.

Siti Nurbaya said the plastic products targeted by the ban included styrofoam for food packaging, plastic straws, plastic cutlery and plastic shopping bags

"This is one of the ways to deal with difficult-to-collect garbage, [garbage that is] difficult to recycle economically," Siti Nurbaya was quoted as saying by Antara.

The government is working toward its target of 70-per cent waste management and 30-per cent waste reduction by 2025, as mandated in Presidential Regulation No. 97/2017 on household waste management.

To cut back on plastic consumption, the ministry has issued a number of regulations

In 2019, the Environment and Forestry Ministry issued a ministerial regulation (PermenLHK) No. 75/2019, which stipulates plastic producers must set up a waste-reduction road map for their products.

In January, Siti Nurbaya said the government was committed to addressing the problem of waste from the upstream and downstream lifecycle of products, targeting “zero waste” by 2030.

In 2020, the Jakarta administration issued a long-awaited gubernatorial regulation banning plastic bags from traditional and modern markets starting in June that year.