Indonesia Generated 60 Million Tons of Hazardous Waste in 2021

Hazardous and toxic waste (B3 waste) is a part of inorganic waste that contributes to environmental pollution. In 2021, Indonesia generated 60 million tons of B3 waste.

Based on its source, much of the B3 waste originated from the manufacturing sector. Data from the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) shows that 2,897 industries in the manufacturing sector generated B3 waste last year.

Furthermore, the infrastructure sector generated B3 waste from 2,406 industries. Then, 2,103 industries in the agricultural sector (agro-industry) generated B3 waste, and the mining, energy, and oil and gas sector generated B3 waste from 947 industries.

KLHK recorded that of the 60 million tons of B3 waste generated, the potential that can be utilized based on technical approval is 48.6 million tons. This means that the potential utilization of B3 waste generated last year reached 80.93%.

However, according to the KLHK report, only 13.26 million tons or 22.5% of B3 waste has been utilized. This figure is still relatively low, indicating that the utilization of B3 waste is not yet maximized.

The utilization of B3 waste includes its use as fuel and raw materials. A total of 465,200 tons of B3 waste per year were utilized as fuel, with an economic value of Rp 538,462 per ton. Meanwhile, B3 waste utilized as raw materials reached 12.8 million tons per year with an economic value of Rp 1.64 million per ton.