Assessing compliance with environmental regulations: a case study of fines imposed on companies in the Citarum River Basin, Indonesia

The Indonesian Government has established targets for law enforcement concerning pollution loading and environmental damage, as regulated by the Regulation of the Minister of Environment (MoE) of the Republic of Indonesia 7/2014. Several cases of non-compliance with environmental laws have been processed in the Citarum River basin, resulting in varying fines being imposed. This research examines how much fines imposed on non-compliant companies align with the provisions outlined in the MoE Regulation 7/2014. Additionally, the study compares the fines with the capital required for establishing proper wastewater treatment plants and implementing comprehensive hazardous waste management. Based on data obtained from court evidence and decisions, this paper employs descriptive analysis to understand the current sanctioning and calculation of fines in multiple cases of environmental law non-compliance in the Citarum River, focusing on the textile industry. The findings from two civil cases of non-compliance reveal that the determination of sanctions does not consider the costs associated with environmental restoration and ecosystem loss. In those civil lawsuits, 99% of fines imposed only consist of losses caused by exceeding the environmental quality standard. In criminal cases, fines applied only cover approximately 8.37% of the total hypothetical WWTP operational cost and sludge handling (for wastewater discharge debit 100 m³ per day) and 0.84% of the total hypothetical WWTP operating cost and sludge handling (for wastewater discharge debit 1000 m³ per day). Based on the findings, we argue that the fines in civil and criminal cases for textile industries in the Citarum River Basin are still insufficient.