The challenge: plastic pollution in Indonesia
Indonesia is the world’s second-largest ocean-plastic polluter, and an estimated 80% of marine plastic arrives via rivers, carried downstream by floods and monsoon rain. With limited waste management infrastructure across many municipalities, even everyday household waste ends up in waterways. Once plastic reaches the ocean, recovery is close to impossible, so stopping it upstream is one of the most effective interventions available.
Sungai Watch’s approach to preventing plastic pollution
Sungai Watch designs, installs and maintains river barriers, running daily clean-up operations across 226+ rivers. Waste is brought to regional sorting hubs, audited by brand to support advocacy for stronger government regulation, then washed, shredded and prepared for recycling. Around 55% of what is collected is recyclable with current capabilities, and through Sungai Design, plastic is upcycled into saleable products that help fund further cleanups.
Major Achievements
As of October 2025, Sungai Watch had removed over 3,754,000 kg of plastic waste from rivers, employed 170 full-time local River Warriors, and engaged more than 22,000 community members. They clean and monitor 386 rivers daily, an average of 2,500 kg of waste collected each day, across 12 sorting facilities. In September 2025, flash floods across Bali sent unprecedented volumes of waste downstream; Sungai Watch’s emergency teams cleared debris in hazardous conditions and led one of the year’s largest post-storm cleanups, supported by hundreds of volunteers.
How Explorations Company supported Sungai Watch
As part of our 2025–26 Impact Programme, we fully funded a large trash barrier in the Kuta Utara region of Bali, covering its installation, maintenance, waste collection and processing. In its first 50 days, the barrier captured, sorted and recycled 72.55 kg of non-organic waste, helping prevent debris entering the ocean during peak runoff, and partially supported the wages of 11 to 16 full-time team members. This partnership extended our Impact commitment into marine conservation work in a region many of you know well.
How can Explorations Company guests engage with Sungai Watch on their holiday to Bali?
Depending on travel plans and operational permissions, Explorations Company guests may be able to observe a barrier in action, visit a sorting facility or join a structured cleanup day led by Sungai Watch. Engagements are arranged with consideration for safety, seasonality and community impact.
Our partnership with Sungai Watch is part of how Explorations Company links travel with making a positive impact on the environmental, protecting our most-loved natural places. To find out more, please feel free to get in touch with our specialists who are on hand to assist.
