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Indonesia’s Journey to Extended Producer Responsibility Implementation

If you are in the sustainability sector, there is a higher chance that you have heard about Extended Producers Responsibility (EPR), but what is it exactly? EPR is a policy where the producers are given the responsibility to manage the entire life cycle of the products that they produce. Under this definition, producers are anticipated to incorporate environmentally-friendly designs for their products and facilitate easier management of post-consumer waste. This essentially constitutes the implementation of a circular economy system, wherein products and materials are maintained within circulation through various processes such as maintenance, reuse, refurbishment, remanufacture, recycling, and composting. Hence, EPR is an integral component of the circular economy.

EPR Worldwide Overview

The EPR concept is adopted in many countries as a way to tackle waste problems. Each country has its own regulation to manage how the EPR is implemented. Some countries have started it for a while like Germany or the Netherlands, while others may have just begun the implementation. Indonesia is one of the countries that has just regulated its EPR concept in 2019. Below is a bit of an overview of the EPR implementation in some countries.

EPR in Indonesia

Indonesia implements EPR under the Minister’s of Environment and Forestry Regulation No. 75 Year 2019 on Waste Reduction Roadmap by Producers (P75/2019). This regulation mandates producers to develop a roadmap, laying out the plan to achieve the target of reducing 30% of waste by 2029. Producers are required to implement, evaluate, and report the result based on the roadmap submitted.

P75/2019 targets three types of producers to submit their roadmaps which are the manufacturers, food and drink services, and retails, starting from the multinational companies, national companies, and Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME). Producers are expected to reduce the waste from their products that are hard to be degraded, non-recyclables, and non-reusable. The targeted type of materials are plastics, aluminum can, glass, and paper.

Waste Reduction Roadmap

Initially, producers must collect baseline data on their waste production, which will be projected until 2029 to achieve the 30% waste reduction target. Subsequently, producers will need to devise methods to reduce waste until the target is reached. The roadmap will be submitted through the producers’ application and reviewed by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry. Once approved, producers are obligated to adhere to the roadmap and submit annual reports for verification and assessment by the ministry. The assessment will assign scores to each producer.

Waste Reduction Strategy

The roadmap outlines producer’s waste reduction strategies, employing three efforts: reduction (R1), recycling (R2), and reuse (R3). Producers have the flexibility to select any combination of these methods in reaching the target.

Reduction (R1)
R1 entails utilizing packaging that degrades easily, is recyclable, or generates minimal waste. Producers are advised to redesign their packaging by minimizing its size, decreasing plastic usage, incorporating more recyclable materials, or transitioning to environmentally friendly materials. Furthermore, producers have the option to implement refill systems, which can significantly reduce packaging usage.
Recycling (R2)
R2 aims for producers to collect and recycle their waste. Producers are permitted to collaborate with collectors, recyclers, waste banks, associations, and other related stakeholders for the collection and recycling process. Moreover, producers can engage consumers in waste collection efforts by installing reverse vending machines, establishing collection points in various public locations, or organizing take-back programs where customers receive rewards afterward.
Reuse (R3)
R3 encourages producers to utilize reusable packaging for their products. A prominent example is the use of gallon containers for mineral water. It is advisable for producers to collaborate among themselves and with companies that employ reusable packaging models to establish shared cleaning stations for sanitizing the packaging before reintroducing it into circulation. Moreover, such collaboration will contribute to the growth of the reusable packaging business model in the market.

Current Progress

Up until 2023, 42 producers have submitted their waste roadmaps while 35 producers have had accounts for the producers application. The ministry is expecting more companies to start complying to the regulation in the coming years. There are a few concerns on the regulation related to unclear incentives, difficulties in compiling data, and lack of third party partners to assist with the implementation. A few key points that could be considered in ensuring successful implementation of this regulation are as follows:

Traceability
How can we ensure there is transparency across the value chain, especially on R2 collection?
Ecosystem
How can we increase the number of players in the waste management ecosystem in Indonesia to enable this circularity transformation?
Monitoring and evaluation
What are the measures to track progress and iterate the policy?
Multi-stakeholder cooperation
How can we involve all the stakeholders to contribute in the waste reduction effort?

Nonetheless, this regulation marks a positive initial step towards involving producers for reducing waste in Indonesia. Given that waste poses a significant global challenge, actions are needed to mitigate its detrimental effects. We view this regulation as a testament to Indonesia’s dedication to addressing this issue, and we are hoping that it will be a catalyst for impactful initiatives in the future.

References

https://www.oecd.org/environment/extended-producer-responsibility.htm
https://epr-info.com/
https://www.tomra.com/en/news-and-media/feature-articles/what-is-extended-producer-responsibility
https://aliansizerowaste.id/2021/02/19/permen-lhk-nomor-75-tahun-2019-solusi-jitu-pengurangan-sampah-produsen/
https://mediaindonesia.com/humaniora/580205/baru-42-produsen-yang-miliki-peta-jalan-pengurangan-sampah
https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/topics/circular-economy-introduction/overview
https://recykal.com/blog/extended-producer-responsibility-status-around-the-world/
https://vatcompliance.co/epr-packaging-germany/
https://prevent-waste.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Germany.pdf
https://www.oecd.org/environment/waste/Australia%20NTCRS%20OECD%20case%20study.pdf
https://www.dcceew.gov.au/environment/protection/waste/product-stewardship/products-schemes/television-computer-recycling-scheme
https://sphera.ec4p.com/resources/news/weee-batteries-and-packaging-epr-in-new-zealand
https://www.lojo.co.nz/insights/ii-waste-minimisation-tools
https://www.cpb.nl/sites/default/files/omnidownload/PBL-CPB-2021-Extended-Producer-Responsibility-Design-Functioning-Effects.pdf
https://www.government.nl/documents/publications/2023/05/01/infographic-extended-producer-responsibility-for-textiles
https://recykal.com/blog/a-guide-to-epr-compliance-in-india/#:~:text=Extended%20Producer%20Responsibility%20(EPR)%20Plan,%2C%20recycling%2C%20and%20awareness%20raising.
https://saahaszerowaste.com/extended-producer-responsibility/
Ministry of Environment and Forestry Regulation No. 75 Year 2019 on Waste Reduction Roadmap by Producers