Project STOP looks to create effective circular waste management systems with local governments in high-pollution areas of Southeast Asia that have high plastic leakage into the ocean and low waste collection coverage.

The programme started in Muncar, Indonesia in 2017, and it has since expanded to form partnerships with two other cities in the country. In total it has, to date, prevented more than 66,000 tonnes of waste from polluting nature, while creating nearly 300 jobs for waste workers in the areas it operates. By the end of March 2024, around 350,000 people had gained access to comprehensive waste services through Project STOP, which stands for Stop Ocean Plastics.

Founded by chemicals company Borealis and environmental consultancy Systemiq, Project STOP uses a 'system enabler' approach to build waste management systems with local governments that can then be fully operated without it. Last year, it fully handed over the running of the systems in its second and third cities, Pasuruan and Jembrana, having stepped back from involvement in the first city, Muncar, in 2022.

"We work hand in hand with Indonesia's national and local governments to build waste management capacity and competences and to share best-practices across regions," said Anthony Berthold, manager, Project STOP at Borealis. "We work with private sector companies, including local recycling companies and develop circular economy solutions to keep the value of materials in a circular loop."

"Since Project STOP's inception by Systemiq and Borealis in 2017, we've made significant strides with our many governmental and non-governmental partners in creating effective circular waste management systems in Indonesia," said Lintong Manik, senior project manager at Project STOP Banyuwangi. "Now serving around 350,000 people, we've created nearly 300 jobs and collected over 66,000 tonnes of waste."

Project STOP aims to serve 2 million people with waste collection services, collect 230,000 tonnes of waste annually, 25,000 of which would be plastic and create 1,000 full time jobs.

"Waste management is a real issue in Southeast Asia, the need for it is crucial," commented one Environmental Finance judge. "A great initiative that we hope will be able to be scaled up at least regionally."