An investigation launched late last month found that three companies, namely PT Hino Karya Mandiri, PT Cuan International Group and CV Wira Satria Mandiri, had been operating unlicensed garbage trucks. Another company, CV Super Steel Tiga Bersaudara, was found transporting waste to an unauthorized dumpsite.

The four companies, alongside CV Al Ihsaniah, were also found to have illegally sorted or managed waste without the required permits, according to the agency. The five companies were only licensed to transport waste to designated disposal sites.

Jakarta has so far licensed 68 companies to provide waste collection services for commercial establishments such as hotels, restaurants and coffee shops.

Under a 2013 bylaw on waste management, companies must obtain a separate permit to manage waste after collection to ensure compliance with waste segregation and environmental safety standards. Licensed operators are also required to use authorized garbage trucks. Violations carry fines of between Rp 5 million (US$281) and Rp 10 million.

Read also: Waste crisis haunts Greater Jakarta

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The agency also found PT Jangjo Teknologi Indonesia operating unlicensed garbage trucks, although the company holds both the required transportation and waste-management permits.

The agency ordered the six companies to each pay the maximum Rp 10 million fine and warned that their permits could be revoked if they repeat the violations. It had previously fined five other companies for similar offenses.

Agency head Dudi Gardesi Asikin said the crackdown was part of a broader effort to break an emerging cycle of illegal dumping across the capital.

“There must be no waste transport or management outside the official system,” Dudi said Friday.

“Every party must be responsible for the waste they generate because when the management is flawed, the public and the environment will subsequently bear the consequences.”

Jakarta has seen a surge of makeshift dumpsites as the gradual closure of Bantar Gebang, the capital’s largest landfill in Bekasi, has put further pressure on the city’s waste management system.

A deadly landslide at the 110-hectare landfill killed seven people this year, while several environmental violations at the site prompted the Environment Ministry to order Jakarta to stop using it altogether.

Bantar Gebang, however, remains the final destination for most of the capital’s roughly 8,000 tonnes of daily waste. Its gradual closure has raised concerns that more garbage could end up at unauthorized dumpsites.

In the fishing village of Cilincing, North Jakarta, local residents and some waste collection companies have allegedly turned a six-hectare plot of land into an illegal dumpsite, with piles of garbage reportedly reaching 10 meters high.

The site made headlines in mid-August after at least four journalists from different media outlets were allegedly barred from reporting on the illegal dumping. The incident prompted condemnation from several press groups.

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