Indonesians Welcome Pay for Plastic Bag Policy

Indonesians have been quick to embrace the new policy of paying for plastic bags each time they purchase groceries, saying the environmental benefits outweigh the hassle of bringing their own bags.

“I agree with the policy and many advanced countries such as the US and those in Europe actually have implemented it a long time ago. It makes their number of plastic consumption really low,” Aini Mutiah Sabrina, a teacher in the South Sulawesi capital of Makassar, told the Jakarta Globe on Monday.

She added that like many of her peers she often brings her own reusable canvas bags from home.

“If I forget to bring my shopping bags, I will not buy anything unless it is really necessary.”

The policy, implemented in 22 cities across Indonesia, was rolled out on Sunday in a bid to cut down waste.

Indonesia ranks second among the world's largest plastic waste producers, behind only China, using 187.2 million tons each year, according to a study published last year in the journal Science. The policy will run as a trial for six months, before being implemented elsewhere if proven successful, Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar said.

Although the ministry recommends charging customers Rp 200 per bag, the actual costs are decided by provincial and city governments. But some are skeptical charging such a low sum will significantly reduce plastic waste — which takes dozens of years to decompose in the overflowing landfills across the country's major cities.

“The government could instead shut down plastic manufacturers and give them proper training to do business other than plastic,” travel agency owner Ria Pratama of Bogor, West Java, told the Globe.