Bali’s issues with waste management feel never-ending. The effect of the poor waste management infrastructure is having a negative impact on local communities, tourists, and the environment.
While leaders have vowed, for years, that swift and serious action would be taken, the situation never seems to be fully resolved.
One of the biggest controversies in the sphere of waste management in Bali is Suwung TPA. It is the province’s biggest open landfill site. Currently standing at over storeys high and sprawling over 32 hectares, according to the last estimation, Suwung TPA receives more than 1,000 tonnes of trash every day.
The site technically stopped receiving organic waste as of August 2025; however, it is unclear how much mixed waste has still been permitted to be dumped at the site. The site was supposed to be closed once and for all ahead of Bali hosting the G20 Summit in November 2022.
More recently, the site was issued with another round of final closure notices for the end of December 2025. However, this received kickback and protests from local trash collectors who highlighted to the local government that an insufficient alternative was available. This month, the Indonesian Environment Minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq has stipulated that starting April 2026, organic waste will no longer be allowed to be disposed of at the Suwung Landfill in Bali to accelerate the transformation of waste management.
He told reporters, “We’re asking for the pressure on the Suwung landfill to be reduced. Only inorganic waste that doesn’t have the potential to cause additional pollution is allowed there. So, in April, only inorganic waste will be allowed into Suwung. Organic waste must be disposed of upstream.”
He confirmed that monitoring will be implemented to ensure that organic waste does not get dumped at the site. Minister Nurofiq added, “We must take firm action against self-management, against people who don’t sort their waste, their waste doesn’t need to be transported, it shouldn’t be allowed to enter the Suwung Landfill, so we all must make every effort to sort our waste starting from the upstream.”
Minister Nurofiq explained, “We have asked the mayor and the regent to complete organic waste sorting within a month at the latest. Everyone must act quickly; no one can slack off.”
He was clear that the Suwung TPA is now under an investigation for environmental pollution, and that the central government is no longer providing coercive administrative sanctions, but a criminal approach if the incoming waste is not reduced. Minister Nurofiq confirmed, “There really is no longer any organic waste allowed to come in. No matter who it is, waste must be sorted starting now. Without sorting, organic waste will no longer be allowed to enter the Suwung Landfill by the end of March.”
As much as 60% of the waste produced in Bali is organic waste, and if disposed of and processed correctly, it can be turned into compost that can be used on the land. However, when mixed with inorganic material, the decomposition process is slowed down, and more pollution is created.
What does this mean for tourists and international residents in Bali? The knock-on impact could be more of a focus at a home, village, and community level to separate out waste and to take more responsibility over organic waste production.
The process could even be incentivised by the Badung Regency Government, which oversees top destinations like Canggu, Seminyak, and Uluwatu.
The Regent of Badung, Adi Wayan Arnawa, told reporters, “We urge the public to separate their waste. I’m open to offering rewards or prizes for those who manage their waste properly.”
Badung Regency has already stepped up its waste management processing system, which will have a positive impact on tourism resorts in the area.
This week, the Badung Regency Government has launched the Source-Based Waste Management Acceleration Action (ASPER PSBS). Regent Arnawa explained, “This Source-Based Waste Management Acceleration Action is the first step in establishing a patterned and integrated waste management system.”
He was joined at the launch by Acting Head of the Badung Environment and Sanitation Agency (DLHK), Made Rai Warastuthi, who shared, “This program is a management system that starts at the waste generation point, through sorting, processing, and reducing waste before it is transported to a further processing facility.”
Concluding “The targets of this activity include all villages and sub-districts in Badung Regency, households, business units, community groups, educational institutions, public and social facilities, traditional markets, and various other sources of waste generation.”
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