Regulation on Extended Producer Responsibility Strengthens the Ministry

The Government's discourse on strengthening the regulation of the Extended Producer Responsibility (“ EPR ”) scheme is focused on expanding coordination between Ministries or Institutions (“ K/L ”), including the establishment of new mechanisms.

“Bappenas will initiate efforts aimed at bridging the regulations issued by the Ministry of Environment with their practical implementation, to ensure that these rules truly function at the industrial level,” said Leonardo A.A. Teguh Sambodo, Deputy for Food, Natural Resources, and Environment at Bappenas.

In the plan prepared by the Ministry of National Development Planning/National Development Planning Agency (PPN/Bappenas), the strengthening of EPR will involve a number of K/L, not only the Ministry of Environment. These include the Ministry of Industry, the Ministry of Home Affairs, the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), as well as the National Public Procurement Agency (LKPP).

In addition to the involvement of new K/L, the scope of the EPR project is also divided from upstream to downstream. At the upstream stage, producers are encouraged to design materials that are easier to recycle, reduce the use of unnecessary or hazardous substances, and increase the recycled content in their products. Meanwhile, at the downstream stage, the implementation of EPR is carried out through the sorting and collection of post-consumer waste, the provision of incentives for the recycling ecosystem, and the strengthening of processing facilities such as recycling facilities.