Bali’s Governor Wayan Koster has set out new commitments to tackle the island’s waste management issues.
Bali’s issues with trash and plastic pollution are no secret, and as the provincial government set out on a new chapter, they are near that change is coming.
Following a meeting with a Bali-based environmental NGO, Bali Governor Wayan Koster confirmed his plans to clean up all of Bali’s trash as early as 2027. Governor Koster explained, “In implementing the 2025-2030 program, as part of the Nangun Sat Kerthi Loka Bali mission, one of the urgent priorities is to make Bali free from waste. The target is within two years, the sooner the better.”
He continued “Source-based waste management in Bali must be successfully implemented in 636 villages and 1,500 tractional villages, that will be integrated into this system to ensure a complete resolution. The absolute deadline is 2027.”
Co-founder of Sungai Watch Gary Bencheghib explained, “We just met with the Governor of Bali. He’s making it an emergency to clean the trash problem here in Bali. So let’s see what we can make happen out of this.”
Sam Bencheghib, also a Co-Founder of the NGO shared “They have a plan with the Ministry of the Environment of Indonesia, to clean Bali all of Bali within the next two years. So I think we’re in a very exciting moment. We’re excited to keep pushing with the government, keep pushing Sungai Watch to clean rivers. So it seems like this is just the beginning and there’s a lot more good things to happen.”
Although the monsoon season is coming to a close in Bali, tides of ocean plastic are still washing up on the island’s most popular beaches. Earlier this week a huge deposit of waste washed ashore on Labuan Sait Beach.
A team from the Badung Environmental and Sanitation Service worked to separate the plastic trash from the driftwood debris, though struggles to remove the trash in time for the Nypei festival. Teams will return to the beach to complete the clean up on Monday 31st March.
Since his inauguration into his second term in office, Governor Koster has issued several major statements regarding waste management in Bali.
In fact, he has already introduced legislative changes that will see hotel and restaurant business face sanctions if they fail to process their waste in the correct way. He is also threatening to remove the business operations permits of enterprises found to be violating the law.
Governor Koster told reporters that this new legislation will see more strict enforcement of an existing set of regulations. He noted “The sanctions are related to licensing and will be conveyed that the hotel is not environmentally friendly. As soon as possible it will be implemented, because the regulations already exist.”
The impact on tourists remains to be seen, but hotel guests will likely see even more efforts from their accommodation providers to reduce single use plastic waste, encourage recycling, and use of low waste products throughout the premises.
Technically speaking, tourists in Bali are not permitted to use single use plastics at all. As outlined in the “Circular Letter (SE) No. 07 of 2025 concerning New Regulations for Foreign Tourists During Their Stay in Bali” which was published on 21st March 2025, it clearly states that tourists are forbidden to engaging in“littering or using single-use plastics.”
This is just one of six key prohibitions that tourists must abided by during their time in Bali, alongside nine “must do” rules which include the need to “Wear modest and appropriate clothing when visiting sacred sites, tourist attractions, and public areas.”
When issuing the updated rules, Governor Koster told reporters, “All parties must understand, implement, and socialize these [policies] to their staff and foreign tourists visiting Bali.”
The Governor is also calling on the the general public to actively report violations via the WhatsApp hotline at 081-287-590-999.
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