Indonesia Flooded with Microplastics - Gen Z's Health Threat

Indonesia is currently experiencing a microplastic emergency, where plastic pollution has reached a national scale and has a serious impact on human health and the environment. Based on the latest data, microplastics have spread widely into water, air, food and even the human body. Microplastics are divided into 2, namely primary and secondary microplastics, the source of these microplastics is plastic waste, industrial liquid waste (paper and plastic recycling, as well as microbeads in personal care products. ECOTON (Ecological Observation and Wetlands Conservation) proposes establishing Quality Standards Microplastics as a concrete step to overcome this threat.

Microplastic pollution which seeps into water, air, food and the human body demands clear and strict regulations. ECOTON urges the government to immediately establish Microplastic Quality Standards, as a strategic step to reduce the impact of this pollution. The proposed microplastic quality standards aim to maintain the quality of water, air and food products, so that they can protect public health and preserve the environment.

6 Important Facts Regarding Microplastic Pollution in Indonesia:

1.       Indonesia is the 3rd Largest Contributor to Plastic Pollution in the World Based on data from Kompas.com in 2024, Indonesia is in third place as the largest contributor to plastic pollution in the world, after India and Nigeria. India leads the world in producing plastic pollution with 10.2 million metric tons per year or around 9.3 million metric tons. This amount is far more than double the next big polluting countries, Nigeria at 3.5 million metric tons per year and Indonesia at 3.4 million metric tons per year. Meanwhile, China is in fourth place by contributing 2.8 million metric tons per year.

2.        Microplastics pollute rivers in Indonesia. Based on the results of the Nusantara River Expedition, microplastics have been detected in large rivers in Indonesia. Microplastics from degraded plastic waste flow through rivers, enter freshwater ecosystems and flow into the sea. Most of this plastic pollution comes from domestic and industrial waste which is not managed properly and is directly discharged into the environment, including rivers. In fact, 80% of the rivers in Indonesia are used as raw material for PDAMs (Regional Drinking Water Companies which are consumed every day by the Indonesian people.

3.       High Consumption of Microplastics by Indonesian People: Based on data from the journal Environmental Science & Technology in 2024, Indonesian people are estimated to consume 15 grams of microplastics per month, equivalent to the size of one ATM card. This places Indonesia as the country with the highest level of microplastic consumption in the world. Microplastics enter the human body mostly through ingestion, inhalation and skin absorption. Namely, plastic particles come from aquatic sources such as seafood or rivers, the use of single-use plastics, water and air contaminated with microplastics, and the use of personal care products that contain microbeads.

4.       Air Contaminated with Microplastics. Not only in water, the air we breathe is also contaminated with microplastics. Based on ECOTON research data, from 2022 to 2024, every person in Indonesia has the potential to inhale around 90 microplastic particles per hour, which can enter the respiratory system and cause various health problems.

5.       80% of fish in Indonesia contain microplastics. As much as 80% of the fish consumed by Indonesian people, especially fish such as tilapia, tilapia and milkfish, has been contaminated with microplastics. This suggests that microplastics have entered the human food chain, posing serious health risks.

6.       Microplastics are formed from more than 14,000 Toxic chemicals including EDC (Endocrine Disruption Chemical Compound) compounds. Recent research shows that microplastics have been found in breast milk (ASI), amniotic fluid (amnion), urine and human feces in Indonesia. This contamination increases the risk of long-term health problems, including hormonal and reproductive problems. Microplastics are formed from more than 14,000 additional ingredients which are included in the EDC (Endocrine Disruption Chemical Compound) compound, which is a hormone-disrupting chemical that can change the expression of various hormone receptors and disrupt the synthesis, secretion, transport and action of hormones, which causes endocrine and developmental disorders. , and makes the immune system weak.

Having hydrophobic bonds, microplastics can carry many pollutants such as EDCs, heavy metals and other toxic organic chemicals, making them dangerous for organisms, especially humans, through bioaccumulation and biomagnification processes. Microplastics and the chemical compounds that make up them have the ability to bioaccumulate, that is, they accumulate in the tissues of organisms during their lives, because the body is unable to completely remove these particles. It also has biomagnification capabilities, namely microplastics and their chemical compounds move from one organism to another in the food chain, so that their concentration increases at the top level of the food chain, including humans. Microplastics and their toxic additives can cross various biological membranes, the blood-brain barrier, and both can interfere with various hormone receptors. In fact, currently microplastics have been found in important human organs