Indonesia sending back dozens of containers of waste back to Western nations

Indonesia is sending dozens of containers of waste back to Western nations after finding it was contaminated with used nappies, plastic and other materials, adding to a growing backlash in Southeast Asia against being a dumping ground for the developed world’s rubbish.

The country’s directorate general of customs said Tuesday that 49 containers in Batam port near Singapore will be returned to Australia, the US, France, Germany and Hong Kong.

It is the latest in a series of announcements by south-east Asian nations that they will not be dumping grounds for overseas waste.

Global recycling was thrown into chaos last year when China banned imports of foreign plastic waste, leaving developed nations struggling to find places to send their rubbish. Huge quantities have since been redirected to south-east Asia, but opposition to handling exported waste is growing in the region.

 

Via The Guardian

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