Jakarta (VNA) – Indonesia’s government is banking on waste-to-energy facilities to curb mounting pressure on overcrowded landfills, as daily waste volumes in dozens of cities exceed manageable levels and pose growing environmental and health risks.
As scheduled, the Indonesian government will soon begin construction of waste-to-energy projects at 34 locations nationwide, marking one of the largest rollouts of such facilities in Indonesia to date.
Waste-to-energy plants will be built in districts and cities where waste volumes have exceeded 1,000 tonnes per day and require immediate handling.
According to Deputy Minister of Public Works Diana Kusumastuti, waste-to-energy plants, known locally as PSEL, are designed to reduce the accumulation of garbage at landfill sites by converting waste into electricity, becoming a critical response to Indonesia’s escalating waste problem.
Kusumastuti said many landfills are now operating beyond capacity, largely because waste reduction, sorting and processing at the household and community levels remain inadequate. As a result, most garbage continues to be sent directly to landfill sites without prior treatment.
Landfills are still needed as part of an integrated waste management system, but the process must start upstream,” she said, referring to waste prevention, reduction and processing, she added.
Kusumastuti said the Ministry of Public Works is coordinating closely with the Danantara Investment Management Agency (Danantara), other ministries, state institutions and regional governments to ensure the necessary infrastructure is in place for the technical operation of PSEL facilities.
Indonesia hopes that the PSEL programme will significantly reduce environmental impacts, curb greenhouse gas emissions from landfills, lower public health risks, and simultaneously supplement local power grids./.
