Illegal dumping in Indonesia

The prohibition is in the national law

Law No. 18 of 2008 on Waste Management prohibits disposing of waste other than in designated and provided places. That sits in article 29.

The law also contains criminal provisions, reaching up to 3 months detention or a maximum fine of Rp 50,000,000 for conduct falling within them.

But what applies day to day is usually the regional regulation

This is what makes the figures online contradict each other, and the law itself is what arranges it that way.

Article 29(3) delegates further regulation of part of those prohibitions to district and city perda, and those perda can carry their own criminal or monetary penalties.

So if you are looking for an amount, your city’s perda decides it, not the national figure. Most of the numbers circulating are correct, just for a different region.

Burning waste is regulated too

This section does not appear in the European guides in this programme, but it matters here because burning is one of the commonest disposal methods.

Burning waste in a way that does not meet the technical requirements for waste management is prohibited and carries sanctions.

Beyond the law, smoke from burning household waste, plastic especially, carries substances that plainly harm the nearest neighbours, usually children and the elderly.

Where to report it

• The kelurahan or kecamatan, usually the fastest route for a neighbourhood pile
• The district or city environmental agency
• Satpol PP, which enforces the regional regulations
• The police if you saw who did it or have a vehicle registration
• If there is fire, heavy smoke or leaking liquid, that is an emergency rather than an ordinary report

What a useful report contains

• Exact location, with coordinates if possible. On an empty plot or a village lane an address is often not enough
• Two photos: one close so the type of waste is visible, one wider so the place can be found again
• The type: construction rubble, furniture, tyres, garden waste, drums, asbestos sheeting. It decides who handles it
• Approximate quantity, with something visible for scale
• The date, and how long it has been there if you know
• Clues to origin visible without disturbing anything: delivery notes, labels, company names. Do not dig through the waste

What not to do

• Do not clear it before reporting and photographing it. The intention is good and the evidence goes
• Do not touch drums, sealed sacks or sheeting that might contain asbestos
• Do not burn it. That adds a problem rather than solving one, and it carries sanctions
• Do not add to it. One dumping spot attracts others within days

Why a public record helps

A cleared spot becomes a dumping site again with striking regularity. Such spots repeat for structural reasons: reachable by vehicle, dark at night, far from the local waste point.

One report produces one clearance. A dated, photographed history of the same spot is something else: it is the basis for asking for a fence, a camera, signage or a nearer collection point. On CleanSpot each report keeps a photo, a date and coordinates on a public map, and reopening the same spot builds that history.

It does not replace reporting to the kelurahan or the agency, and we do not present it as if it did. It is the evidence that is usually missing.

Sources

• UU No. 18 Tahun 2008 tentang Pengelolaan Sampah — JDIH BPK (2026-08-30)
• Citarum Harum — Bakar sampah tidak sesuai persyaratan teknis, ada sanksinya (2026-08-30)