Jakarta. Environment Minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq said the government plans to build a waste-to-energy (WtE) plant in Jakarta following alarming findings that the city’s rainwater contains microplastics.

Hanif said the microplastic contamination is largely caused by unprocessed plastic waste piling up in landfills across Jakarta. The lack of proper waste treatment, he added, has allowed plastic debris to degrade and spread into the air and water systems.

“This must be addressed immediately because the level of pollution in Jakarta is already serious,” Hanif told reporters at the Parliament Complex in Senayan on Wednesday. “If we don’t act now, microplastics will continue to contaminate not only water but also the air. There’s no need to debate or research further, the evidence is clear.”

The minister said other regions, such as Bekasi, already operate WtE facilities that help prevent plastic pollution from reaching the environment. However, he acknowledged that the Jakarta project still faces challenges, particularly with land availability.

“Jakarta is part of our target, but as of today the land is not ready,” Hanif said.

The announcement comes shortly after a study by the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) revealed that rainwater in Jakarta contains hazardous levels of microplastic particles, underscoring the city’s worsening pollution problem and potential health risks.

Researcher Muhammad Reza Cordova, who led the study, said microplastics were detected in every rainwater sample collected across Jakarta since the study began in 2022.

“These microplastics come from synthetic fibers in clothing, vehicle dust and tires, plastic waste burning, and open-air degradation,” Reza said last week.

The study found that the particles were primarily synthetic fibers and plastic fragments made from polymers such as polyester, nylon, polyethylene, polypropylene, and polybutadiene from tire wear. Samples collected from Jakarta’s coastal areas contained an average of 15 microplastic particles per square meter per day.

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