Environmental Court Litigation in Indonesia: Strict Liability, Class Actions, and NGO Standing Under UU 32/2009

Executive Summary

Law No. 32 of 2009 on Environmental Protection and Management (UU 32/2009) establishes a progressive framework for environmental court litigation through BAB XIII. The law creates multiple pathways for bringing environmental claims before Indonesian courts, including individual suits, government enforcement actions, class actions by affected communities, and public interest litigation by environmental organizations.

A central feature of this framework is strict liability (tanggung jawab mutlak) for activities involving hazardous and toxic materials (B3), B3 waste management, and activities creating serious environmental threats. Strict liability eliminates the requirement to prove fault, shifting the burden to defendants once harm and causation are established. This provision significantly strengthens plaintiff positions in cases involving industrial pollution and hazardous substance contamination.

The law also removes statutes of limitations for B3-related environmental damage, enabling claims for historical contamination regardless of when pollution occurred. Combined with successor liability provisions preventing corporate restructuring from extinguishing environmental obligations, these mechanisms create robust accountability for environmental harm through the court system.

Background & Context

Environmental litigation in Indonesia historically faced significant obstacles including difficulty proving fault in complex pollution cases, limited standing for public interest plaintiffs, and time bars on historical contamination claims. Traditional tort principles required plaintiffs to demonstrate not only harm but also that defendants acted negligently or intentionally, creating substantial evidentiary burdens in technically complex environmental cases.

UU 32/2009 addresses these challenges through multiple innovations. Strict liability for high-risk activities recognizes that certain activities inherently create environmental risks regardless of care taken. By removing the fault requirement for B3-related activities, the law ensures that businesses generating hazardous waste or handling toxic materials bear responsibility for resulting harm without plaintiffs needing to prove operational failures.

The expansion of standing reflects recognition that environmental harm often affects diffuse interests not captured by traditional individual injury models. Government standing allows public agencies to recover environmental damages on behalf of public interests. Class action provisions enable communities to aggregate claims efficiently. NGO standing permits environmental organizations to seek injunctive relief even without direct injury, though damages claims remain limited.

These provisions position Indonesia among countries with progressive environmental litigation frameworks. The strict liability doctrine draws from international environmental law principles including the polluter pays principle. Standing expansions reflect growing recognition of environmental protection as a public interest warranting broad access to courts.

Key Provisions

Fault-Based Civil Liability

The law establishes baseline liability for environmental harm caused by unlawful conduct.

Pasal 87 Ayat 1:

"Setiap penanggung jawab usaha dan/atau kegiatan yang melakukan perbuatan melanggar hukum berupa pencemaran dan/atau perusakan lingkungan hidup yang menimbulkan kerugian pada orang lain atau lingkungan hidup wajib membayar ganti rugi dan/atau melakukan tindakan tertentu."

Every business operator who commits unlawful acts constituting pollution and/or environmental damage causing loss to others or the environment must pay compensation and/or take specific actions. This provision establishes traditional tort liability requiring proof of unlawful conduct, harm, and causation. Courts may order both monetary compensation and specific performance remedies such as cleanup, restoration, or operational changes.

Successor Liability

Corporate restructuring cannot extinguish environmental obligations.

Pasal 87 Ayat 2:

"Setiap orang yang melakukan pemindahtanganan, pengubahan sifat dan bentuk usaha, dan/atau kegiatan dari suatu badan usaha yang melanggar hukum tidak melepaskan tanggung jawab hukum dan/atau kewajiban badan usaha tersebut."

Transfer of ownership, change of business nature and form, and/or change of activity from a legally violating business entity does not release the entity's legal responsibility or obligations. This successor liability provision prevents judgment-proofing through asset transfers, mergers, or restructuring designed to evade environmental liabilities. Purchasers of polluting facilities inherit environmental obligations, creating incentives for environmental due diligence in corporate transactions.

Daily Penalty Payments

Courts can impose escalating penalties for non-compliance with judgments.

Pasal 87 Ayat 3-4:

"(3) Pengadilan dapat menetapkan pembayaran uang paksa terhadap setiap hari keterlambatan atas pelaksanaan putusan pengadilan. (4) Besarnya uang paksa diputuskan berdasarkan peraturan perundang-undangan."

Courts may impose daily penalty payments (uang paksa/dwangsom) for delayed compliance with court orders. This enforcement mechanism creates financial pressure for prompt implementation of remediation orders, cleanup requirements, or operational changes mandated by judgment. Daily accumulating penalties can become substantial, incentivizing defendants to comply rather than delay.

Strict Liability for B3 Activities

High-risk activities trigger liability without fault.

Pasal 88:

"Setiap orang yang tindakannya, usahanya, dan/atau kegiatannya menggunakan B3, menghasilkan dan/atau mengelola limbah B3, dan/atau yang menimbulkan ancaman serius terhadap lingkungan hidup bertanggung jawab mutlak atas kerugian yang terjadi tanpa perlu pembuktian unsur kesalahan."

Any person whose actions, business, or activities use hazardous and toxic materials (B3), produce and/or manage B3 waste, and/or create serious environmental threats bears strict liability (tanggung jawab mutlak) for resulting losses without need to prove the fault element. This provision eliminates the requirement to prove negligence or intentional wrongdoing for qualifying activities. Plaintiffs need only establish the activity, resulting harm, and causal connection. The burden then shifts to defendants to demonstrate applicable defenses.

No Statute of Limitations for B3 Claims

Historical contamination remains actionable indefinitely.

Pasal 89:

"(1) Tenggat kedaluwarsa untuk mengajukan gugatan ke pengadilan mengikuti tenggang waktu sebagaimana diatur dalam ketentuan Kitab Undang-Undang Hukum Perdata dan dihitung sejak diketahui adanya pencemaran dan/atau kerusakan lingkungan hidup. (2) Ketentuan mengenai tenggat kedaluwarsa tidak berlaku terhadap pencemaran dan/atau kerusakan lingkungan hidup yang diakibatkan oleh usaha dan/atau kegiatan yang menggunakan dan/atau mengelola B3 serta menghasilkan dan/atau mengelola limbah B3."

General environmental claims follow Civil Code limitation periods counted from discovery of pollution or damage. However, no statute of limitations applies to pollution or damage from B3 use, B3 management, or B3 waste production and management. This exception recognizes that hazardous substance contamination often manifests years or decades after release, and that toxic contamination may persist indefinitely without remediation. Historical industrial sites remain subject to liability claims regardless of when contamination occurred.

Government Standing

Public agencies may sue for environmental damages.

Pasal 90:

"(1) Instansi pemerintah dan pemerintah daerah yang bertanggung jawab di bidang lingkungan hidup berwenang mengajukan gugatan ganti rugi dan tindakan tertentu terhadap usaha dan/atau kegiatan yang menyebabkan pencemaran dan/atau kerusakan lingkungan hidup yang mengakibatkan kerugian lingkungan hidup."

Government agencies responsible for environmental matters at central and regional levels may sue for compensation and specific actions against activities causing pollution or damage resulting in environmental loss. Government standing enables recovery for damage to public environmental resources not owned by any private party. Environmental loss (kerugian lingkungan hidup) encompasses harm to ecosystems, natural resources, and environmental functions that belong to the public rather than individual victims.

Class Action Rights

Communities may aggregate claims through representative litigation.

Pasal 91:

"(1) Masyarakat berhak mengajukan gugatan perwakilan kelompok untuk kepentingan dirinya sendiri dan/atau untuk kepentingan masyarakat apabila mengalami kerugian akibat pencemaran dan/atau kerusakan lingkungan hidup. (2) Gugatan dapat diajukan apabila terdapat kesamaan fakta atau peristiwa, dasar hukum, serta jenis tuntutan di antara wakil kelompok dan anggota kelompoknya."

Communities have the right to file class actions (gugatan perwakilan kelompok) for their own interests and community interests when suffering loss from pollution or damage. Class actions require commonality of facts or events, legal basis, and claim types among class representatives and members. This mechanism enables efficient aggregation of numerous small claims into single proceedings, reducing per-claimant litigation costs and creating economies of scale for environmental litigation against major polluters.

Environmental NGO Standing

Environmental organizations may sue for environmental protection.

Pasal 92:

"(1) Dalam rangka pelaksanaan tanggung jawab perlindungan dan pengelolaan lingkungan hidup, organisasi lingkungan hidup berhak mengajukan gugatan untuk kepentingan pelestarian fungsi lingkungan hidup. (2) Hak mengajukan gugatan terbatas pada tuntutan untuk melakukan tindakan tertentu tanpa adanya tuntutan ganti rugi, kecuali biaya atau pengeluaran riil. (3) Organisasi lingkungan hidup dapat mengajukan gugatan apabila memenuhi persyaratan: a. berbentuk badan hukum; b. menegaskan di dalam anggaran dasarnya bahwa organisasi tersebut didirikan untuk kepentingan pelestarian fungsi lingkungan hidup; dan c. telah melaksanakan kegiatan nyata sesuai dengan anggaran dasarnya paling singkat 2 (dua) tahun."

Environmental organizations may sue for environmental function preservation. Standing is limited to seeking specific actions (injunctive relief) without damages claims except actual costs incurred. Three requirements apply: legal entity status, environmental preservation purpose stated in organizational charter, and minimum two years of actual environmental activities. These requirements prevent formation of litigation-only organizations while enabling established NGOs to bring public interest environmental claims.

Implementation & Compliance

Plaintiffs considering environmental litigation should assess which standing basis applies to their circumstances. Individual claims require personal injury or property damage. Class actions require affected community members willing to serve as representatives with common claims. NGO standing requires organizational qualification but limits recovery to injunctive relief. Government claims address public environmental resources.

For cases involving hazardous materials or waste, plaintiffs benefit from strict liability provisions eliminating fault requirements. Establishing the defendant's use of B3, generation of B3 waste, or creation of serious environmental threat triggers strict liability. Plaintiffs must still prove harm and causation but need not demonstrate negligence or intent. Expert testimony on contamination pathways and exposure mechanisms remains important for establishing causation.

Defendants in environmental litigation should assess exposure to strict liability based on their activities. B3 users, B3 waste generators, and hazardous waste managers face heightened liability exposure. Environmental compliance programs, monitoring systems, and incident response capabilities can limit harm but do not eliminate strict liability once qualifying activities cause damage.

Corporate transactions involving facilities with environmental exposure should include environmental due diligence and appropriate liability allocation. Successor liability means environmental obligations follow assets regardless of corporate structure changes. Indemnification agreements may allocate liability between parties but do not affect third-party claims.

Conclusion

UU 32/2009's court litigation framework creates multiple access points for environmental claims while strengthening plaintiff positions through strict liability and extended limitation periods. The combination of fault-based and strict liability regimes addresses both general environmental harm and heightened risks from hazardous substance activities.

Multiple standing provisions ensure that individual victims, affected communities, government agencies, and environmental organizations can all pursue appropriate remedies through the court system. While each standing type carries specific requirements and limitations, collectively they provide comprehensive access to justice for environmental disputes requiring formal adjudication.

Official Source

This article analyzes Law No. 32 of 2009 on Environmental Protection and Management (UU 32/2009), specifically BAB XIII (Pasal 87-93) on Environmental Dispute Resolution through Court Litigation.

The official regulation text can be accessed at:

Primary Source:
UU No. 32 Tahun 2009 - BPK Regulation Portal

Alternative Sources:
- JDIH Kementerian Lingkungan Hidup dan Kehutanan

Official Gazette: Lembaran Negara Republik Indonesia Tahun 2009 Nomor 140

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