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Photo 1: A Project STOP waste collector conducts household waste collection in a residential neighborhood in Banyuwangi Regency (Copyright: Project STOP) |
Project STOP, co-founded by Borealis and Systemiq, together with scale-up partner Clean Rivers and in partnership with Banyuwangi Regency and with the vital support of the Indonesian Government, has reached a significant milestone in advancing circular waste management in Southeast Asia. In 2025, the program expanded access to affordable, end-to-end waste management services to 772,485 people – an increase of more than 200,000 compared to 2024 – across all Project STOP cities, with a strong focus on establishing Indonesia’s first regency-wide circular waste management system in Banyuwangi Regency, East Java.
Since 2017, waste management systems supported through Project STOP have collected 100,961 metric tons of waste – equivalent to nearly 200,000 local waste collection tricycle loads. This represents waste collected through these systems, most of which might otherwise have been openly dumped or burned. This milestone reflects the strength of long-term partnership and sustained community engagement. The program has also created 276 full-time-equivalent jobs, strengthening local economies and building capacity for lasting change.
Community engagement remains at the heart of Project STOP. In 2025, with the support of Banyuwangi Regency’s leadership, the program worked closely with village leaders, facilitators, and local influencers, leveraging community meetings and door-to-door outreach. These intensified behavior change efforts have improved household participation rates, which are still below the program’s ambition. Banyuwangi Regency’s efforts have been recognized nationally, ranking second in Indonesia for community-based total sanitation (STBM) and receiving the Swasti Saba Healthy District Award.
A highlight of the year was the transformation of recycled polypropylene from Project STOP’s collected plastic waste into Wild Pots, a new circular product showcased at the K 2025 trade fair. This collaboration between Borealis, Borouge, PT Pelita Mekar Semesta, WILDPLASTIC®, and WITTMANN demonstrates how innovation across the value chain can turn collected plastic waste into high-value products.
Looking ahead, 2026 will be a year of further growth. Project STOP will continue to expand waste collection services to additional villages in Banyuwangi Regency, commission a second material recovery facility in Karetan, and begin construction of two material transfer stations. Once operational, these facilities are expected to handle up to 260 metric tons of waste per day – a critical step toward enabling access to waste services across the Regency for up to 2 million people.
Stefan Doboczky, CEO of Borealis, says: “Surpassing 100,000 metric tons of waste collected is an important milestone for Project STOP and a testament to what long-term partnership and local leadership by Banyuwangi Regency can accomplish. By expanding access to waste management services for hundreds of thousands of people, strengthening local capacities, and advancing critical infrastructure, Project STOP continues to demonstrate how circular solutions can be delivered at scale and these efforts are an integral part of Borealis’ strategy .”
“Reaching this milestone shows that circular waste systems can move beyond pilots and become embedded in local institutions,” says Widharmika Agung, Partner and Head of Indonesia office at Systemiq. “What we are seeing in Banyuwangi is the strengthening of governance, operational capability and infrastructure working together as one system. That systems-level integration is what enables long-term impact at scale.”
"We are proud to be working alongside committed partners to build integrated systems that expand communities’ access to waste services," said Deborah Backus, CEO of Clean Rivers, a UAE-backed foundation tackling global challenges at the intersection of waste and water. "Every ton of waste collected is waste that was not openly burned, dumped or left to leak into soils and waterways – reducing the burdens that mismanaged waste places on lives, livelihoods and the environment.”
