Sumber : Bisnis.com | 5 Januari 2025

The government's goal of eliminating the piles of waste at Integrated Waste Processing Sites (TPST) through waste-to-energy (WtE) projects cannot be a standalone technical solution, but rather is supported by improvements to the comprehensive waste management system.

Sekti Mulatsih, WWF Indonesia's Plastic Smart Cities Program Manager, supports the government's efforts to find waste management solutions. However, she believes that WtE technology must be implemented with careful planning and the selection of technology that is appropriate to the characteristics of waste in Indonesia.

This is in response to a statement by Coordinating Minister for Food Affairs Zulkifli Hasan, who projected that the Bantar Gebang TPST waste would be "eradicated" within the next two years.

"As a tropical country with high rainfall, the two factors that most determine the chemical characteristics of urban waste in Indonesia are the high bioorganic fraction and high moisture content," Sekti explained to Bisnis on Friday (12/19/2025).

Menurut Sekti, dengan komposisi sampah organik yang masih dominan di banyak kota, perlakuan termal pada WtE akan sangat berbeda dengan sampah di negara beriklim sedang.

Currently, he continued, there are still many types of waste that can be managed with cheaper and more environmentally friendly technologies before entering the incineration stage. Therefore, the key to WtE's success lies in waste segregation at the source.

"In a country with waste characteristics like Indonesia, WtE cannot stand alone as a purely technical solution. It must be supported by comprehensive system improvements, from household-level sorting and strengthening the collection chain, intermediate facilities, to controlling emissions and residues downstream," he explained.

Tanpa perbaikan sistem tersebut, WtE berisiko menjadi mahal, tidak efisien, dan menimbulkan dampak lingkungan baru yang bisa jadi cenderung lebih berbahaya.

Sebaliknya, jika pemilahan berjalan baik dan aliran material dirancang sesuai karakteristik sampah, WtE dapat berfungsi sebagai bagian dari ekonomi sirkular yang lebih ramah lingkungan, mengurangi beban Tempat Pembuangan Akhir (TPA), sekaligus menjadi solusi yang layak secara finansial.

Ekonomi Sirkular

Lebih lanjut, Sekti menyatakan bahwa WWF-Indonesia merekomendasikan penerapan prinsip ekonomi sirkular dalam pengelolaan sampah secara utuh. Prinsip ini menempatkan pengurangan timbulan sampah di hulu sebagai langkah pertama, melalui perubahan perilaku konsumsi dan produksi yang lebih bertanggung jawab.

"This effort is followed by waste sorting at the source to ensure valuable materials can be reused and organic fractions are properly managed, thereby minimizing pollution and resource loss," he said.

Pada tahap hilir, dia mendorong agar pemrosesan akhir dilakukan secara ramah lingkungan melalui pendekatan daur ulang, pengolahan organik, dan pemanfaatan energi secara selektif, dengan tetap mengedepankan pengendalian emisi dan residu.

Sebelumnya, Menteri Koordinator Bidang Pangan (Menko Pangan) Zulkifli Hasan (Zulhas) menargetkan sampah yang berada di Tempat Pengolahan Sampah Terpadu (TPST) Bantargebang, Bekasi, Jawa Barat, akan hilang dalam dua tahun ke depan.

This target is expected to be achieved in line with Danantara's strategic project, which will invest in a waste-to-energy (WTE) program.

According to Zulhas, waste processing using WTE technology will be the solution to the problem of urban waste that has been piling up in several areas. "So, God willing, Bantargebang will be gone in two years, and in two years, Bandung. [Cities with waste problems] that are everywhere, will be finished in two years," said Zulhas, as quoted by Antara, Tuesday (12/16/2025).

Pengolahan sampah menjadi energi baru terbarukan (EBT) tersebut telah diatur dalam Peraturan Presiden (Perpres) Nomor 109 Tahun 2025 tentang Penanganan Sampah Perkotaan Melalui Pengolahan Sampah menjadi Energi Terbarukan Teknologi Ramah Lingkungan. Regulasi ini menjadi dasar percepatan pembangunan proyek WTE di berbagai daerah.

Wilayah Prioritas

Di sisi lain, Pemerintah menetapkan 10 wilayah aglomerasi yang akan menjadi pusat pembangunan proyek WtE atau Pengolahan Sampah Menjadi Energi Listrik (PSEL). Penetapan dilakukan untuk memastikan efisiensi pengelolaan sampah lintas wilayah guna mencapai target sampah terkelola 100% pada 2029.

Menteri Lingkungan Hidup Hanif Faisol Nurofiq mengatakan pemerintah sudah menyiapkan sistem perizinan terpadu bersama Kementerian Investasi, termasuk proses pengelolaan aset yang transparan.

"Because the PSEL (Special Waste Management System) is a pillar of new and renewable energy, we are not only testing technical feasibility but also preparing a space for innovation, including solutions for importing advanced technology equipment to ensure smooth operations in the field," he said after a limited coordination meeting at the Coordinating Ministry for Food on Thursday (December 18, 2025), as quoted in a press release.

Hanif menyatakan bahwa pemerintah telah mengintegrasikan sistem perizinan dengan kementerian terkait untuk menjamin keamanan investasi hijau ini bersama Kementerian Investasi/BKPM.

During this meeting, the government agreed to expand the PSEL development into two phases. After the first phase was implemented in Greater Bogor, Greater Denpasar, and Greater Tangerang, the second phase now officially covers the agglomerations of Greater Surabaya (Surabaya, Gresik, Sidoarjo, Lamongan), Greater Lampung (Bandar Lampung, South Lampung, East Lampung), and Greater Serang (Serang City, Cilegon, and Serang Regency). Hanif added that this agglomeration scheme is crucial to ensuring the project's economy of scale, with a minimum waste generation volume of 1,000 tons per day. "As will be implemented on 20 hectares of land in Kota Baru Purwotani, Lampung," added Hanif.