With Project STOP, the Schwarz Group joins forces with a number of specialists from the sectors of waste management, plastic recycling and consulting. The goal of the project is to support Indonesian cities by establishing suitable waste management systems for integrating recyclables into recycling streams before they make their way to or into the sea.
One crucial factor to the success and acceptance of project measures is that profits from the sale of recyclable materials are exclusively for the benefit of the local community, and are used to cover the salaries of collection and sorting workers as well as the operational costs of the waste system. This results in additional, sustainable jobs. The project's long-term objective is clear – at the end of a three-year pilot phase, the project is expected to become completely self-sustaining and in the full responsibility of local stakeholders.
Locally, Where Challenges are the Greatest
The first STOP project began in April 2018 in Muncar, a coastal region in Indonesia. Additional city partnerships were launched in 2019 with Jembrana on the northwestern coast of Bali and Pasuruan on the island of Java. The project will be continuously expanded to further cities in the future.
A detailed, multi-week analysis and review of conditions was carried out directly on site before the joint activities began. This survey not only demonstrated the professionalism of the entire initiative - it also made clear that its spirit fits exactly with our vision of closed loops and the development of a circular economy.
As a technical partner, we function not only as a financial backer, but also work intensely to bring our know-how in the area of recycling systems into the project. Furthermore, the steady, close collaboration with the local population is in line with one of the maxims of our plastic strategy: "Think globally – act locally".
Project Facts and Figures
Cooperation partners
SystemIQ (ecological business consulting) and Borealis (plastics production) as founders, as well as numerous other project partners from the industry sector and local governments
Start of cooperation
2018
Main focus of cooperation
Implementation of an effective communal waste management system to prevent waste from entering into the environment ("Stop the Tap" principle)
Achivements as of the end of 2021
- 260,000 people were connected to new waste management systems, most for the first time
- 226 full-time jobs were created
- 20,000 tons of waste (including 2,400 tons of plastic) were collected and prevented from entering the environment
- 5 waste processing plants (in Muncar, Pasuruan, East Java, Jembrana, Bali) were completed, with a total processing capacity of 150 tons per day
Targets by the end of 2022
- 450,000 people connected to new waste management systems
- 250 full-time jobs created
- 45,400 tons of waste (including 5,700 tons of plastic) collected and prevented from entering the environment
