What Wastewater Discharge Permit Requirements Exist Under PERMENLHK 5/2021?
1.0 The Regulatory Shift: From Permits to Technical Approvals
Indonesia's environmental regulatory framework underwent a significant nomenclature transformation with PERMENLHK 5/2021, replacing the previous wastewater discharge permit system with a dual-document requirement comprising Technical Approvals (Persetujuan Teknis) and Operational Feasibility Certificates (Surat Kelayakan Operasional or SLO). This ministerial regulation, formally titled Peraturan Menteri Lingkungan Hidup Dan Kehutanan Nomor 5 Tahun 2021 tentang Tata Cara Penerbitan Persetujuan Teknis Dan Surat Kelayakan Operasional Bidang Pengendalian Pencemaran Lingkungan, came into effect on April 1, 2021, and revoked six prior regulations concerning wastewater management. The regulation establishes comprehensive procedures for issuing environmental pollution control approvals through Indonesia's integrated electronic licensing system (Pelayanan Perizinan Berusaha Terintegrasi Secara Elektronik).
Persetujuan Teknis is defined in PP No. 22 Tahun 2021 as approval from the Government or Regional Government containing provisions regarding Environmental Protection and Management Standards and/or Traffic Impact Analysis for business and/or activities in accordance with regulations. This technical approval represents the government's pre-operational certification that proposed wastewater management systems meet regulatory standards. Surat Kelayakan Operasional (SLO) is a letter containing a statement of compliance with Environmental Protection and Management Standards for business and/or activities, issued after operations commence to verify ongoing compliance with approved technical specifications. This dual-document framework distinguishes between planning-stage technical compliance (Persetujuan Teknis) and operational-stage performance compliance (SLO), creating a continuous oversight mechanism throughout a facility's lifecycle.
The regulation applies to businesses and activities requiring AMDAL (Environmental Impact Assessment) or UKL-UPL (Environmental Management and Monitoring Efforts) that conduct wastewater discharge and/or utilization activities. Five specific wastewater management categories fall under this regulatory scope: discharge to surface water bodies, discharge to certain geological formations, utilization of wastewater for certain formations, utilization for land application, and discharge to marine environments. This categorical approach allows the Ministry to apply differentiated technical standards based on receiving environment characteristics and potential environmental impacts. The integration with Indonesia's Online Single Submission (OSS) system streamlines the application process while maintaining environmental protection rigor, reflecting the government's commitment to balancing investment facilitation with environmental safeguards.
2.0 Mandatory Documentation: Core Requirements Under Pasal 3
Pasal 3 ayat (1) of PERMENLHK 5/2021 establishes the fundamental compliance obligation for wastewater-generating activities:
"Setiap usaha dan/atau kegiatan wajib Amdal atau UKL-UPL yang melakukan kegiatan pembuangan dan/atau pemanfaatan air limbah, wajib memiliki: a. Persetujuan Teknis; dan b. SLO."
(English: Every business and/or activity requiring AMDAL or UKL-UPL that conducts wastewater discharge and/or utilization activities must possess: a. Technical Approval; and b. Operational Feasibility Certificate.)
This provision creates a mandatory dual-documentation regime for industrial and commercial facilities engaged in wastewater management. The conjunction "dan" (and) indicates that both documents are required—possession of Technical Approval alone does not satisfy regulatory obligations, nor does SLO suffice without prior Technical Approval. The sequential nature of these requirements reflects a phased compliance framework: Technical Approval must be obtained before facility construction or operation commences, while SLO is issued after operations begin and compliance with approved technical specifications can be verified through actual performance data.
Matrix 2.1: Wastewater Management Activities Subject to PERMENLHK 5/2021
| No | Activity Type (Indonesian) | Activity Type (English) | Receiving Environment | Regulatory Considerations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pembuangan Air Limbah ke Badan Air Permukaan | Discharge to Surface Water Bodies | Rivers, lakes, reservoirs | Baku mutu standards vary by water class |
| 2 | Pembuangan Air Limbah ke Formasi Tertentu | Discharge to Certain Geological Formations | Subsurface geological formations | Deep well injection requirements |
| 3 | Pemanfaatan Air Limbah ke Formasi Tertentu | Utilization of Wastewater for Certain Formations | Subsurface formations | Beneficial use criteria apply |
| 4 | Pemanfaatan Air Limbah untuk Aplikasi ke Tanah | Utilization for Land Application | Agricultural or non-agricultural land | Soil quality and crop safety standards |
| 5 | Pembuangan Air Limbah ke Laut | Discharge to Marine Environments | Coastal and offshore waters | Marine pollution standards apply |
The scope of "pembuangan dan/atau pemanfaatan" (discharge and/or utilization) recognizes that wastewater can be either disposed of or beneficially reused, with each pathway requiring appropriate technical specifications and monitoring protocols. Land application, for example, transforms wastewater from waste into an agricultural resource, requiring technical approval criteria focused on nutrient loading rates, soil absorption capacity, and crop safety rather than purely discharge concentration limits.
3.0 Environmental Document Prerequisites: AMDAL and UKL-UPL Linkage
The regulation's scope limitation to "usaha dan/atau kegiatan wajib Amdal atau UKL-UPL" creates a direct linkage between wastewater permitting and Indonesia's broader environmental assessment framework. AMDAL (Analisis Mengenai Dampak Lingkungan) is required for activities with significant potential environmental impacts, as determined by business scale, location sensitivity, and sector-specific criteria established in separate KLHK regulations. UKL-UPL (Upaya Pengelolaan Lingkungan dan Upaya Pemantauan Lingkungan) represents a simplified environmental management framework for activities with moderate environmental impacts that do not meet AMDAL thresholds.
This tiered prerequisite system ensures that wastewater discharge approvals are issued only after comprehensive environmental impact assessment or management planning has occurred. The Technical Approval under PERMENLHK 5/2021 implements the wastewater-specific provisions identified in the AMDAL document or UKL-UPL plan, translating broad environmental commitments into enforceable technical specifications for wastewater quality, monitoring frequency, and reporting obligations. Activities that fall below both AMDAL and UKL-UPL thresholds are exempt from PERMENLHK 5/2021's requirements, though they may remain subject to other environmental regulations such as domestic wastewater standards under PERMENLHK 68/2016.
The integration with AMDAL/UKL-UPL documents means that Technical Approval applications must demonstrate consistency with approved environmental management plans. If an AMDAL document commits to achieving specific wastewater quality standards or implementing particular treatment technologies, the Technical Approval must reflect those commitments as binding operational conditions. This consistency requirement prevents regulatory arbitrage where businesses might seek less stringent wastewater standards than those identified during environmental impact assessment. The SLO issuance process then verifies that constructed treatment systems match approved designs and that actual discharge quality meets committed standards before full operations commence.
4.0 Issuing Authority and Jurisdictional Framework
PERMENLHK 5/2021 implements the jurisdictional distribution framework established in PP No. 22 Tahun 2021, allocating authority to issue Technical Approvals and SLOs among the national Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK), provincial environmental agencies, and district/city environmental agencies based on licensing jurisdiction for the underlying business activity. This allocation follows Indonesia's broader environmental licensing decentralization under the Online Single Submission (OSS) system, where permit issuing authority is determined by business classification codes (KBLI), investment value thresholds, and strategic facility designations.
For nationally strategic projects or businesses requiring central government licensing, KLHK's Directorate General of Pollution and Environmental Damage Control (Direktorat Jenderal Pengendalian Pencemaran dan Kerusakan Lingkungan) issues Technical Approvals and SLOs. Provincial environmental agencies handle Technical Approvals for businesses falling under provincial licensing jurisdiction, typically including medium-scale industrial operations, inter-district infrastructure projects, and activities affecting provincial strategic resources. District and city environmental agencies process Technical Approvals for locally-licensed businesses, representing the majority of small and medium-scale commercial and industrial facilities operating within single administrative boundaries.
Matrix 4.1: Jurisdictional Distribution for Technical Approval Issuance
| Jurisdiction Level | Issuing Authority | Typical Business Categories | Basis for Authority |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central (National) | KLHK - Direktorat Jenderal PPKL | Nationally strategic projects; central government licensing | PP 22/2021; Presidential regulation on strategic projects |
| Provincial | Provincial Environmental Agency (Dinas LHK Provinsi) | Inter-district operations; provincial licensing | PP 22/2021; Regional government regulation |
| District/City | District/City Environmental Agency (Dinas LHK Kabupaten/Kota) | Locally-licensed businesses; single administrative unit operations | PP 22/2021; Local government regulation |
This tri-level framework aims to match regulatory oversight capacity with environmental impact significance and administrative efficiency. Central government retains authority over projects with multi-provincial impacts or national strategic importance, while delegating routine permitting to provincial and local agencies closer to regulated facilities. The regulation establishes coordination mechanisms for situations where wastewater discharge crosses jurisdictional boundaries, requiring consultation between the issuing authority and the receiving environment's jurisdictional agency to ensure comprehensive environmental protection.
5.0 Implementation Timelines and Transitional Provisions
The regulation became effective on April 1, 2021, establishing that date as the cutoff for applying new Technical Approval and SLO requirements to new wastewater discharge activities. Facilities that had obtained valid Izin Pembuangan Air Limbah (wastewater discharge permits) under the previous regulatory regime prior to April 1, 2021, are subject to transitional provisions governing the conversion of existing permits to the new Technical Approval framework. These transitional mechanisms recognize that immediate compliance for all existing facilities would create administrative burden while potentially disrupting ongoing operations that already meet environmental standards under the superseded regulatory system.
The regulation revokes six prior KLHK regulations concerning wastewater management and related environmental permits, creating a unified procedural framework under PERMENLHK 5/2021. The revoked regulations include PERMENLHK P.102/MENLHK/SETJEN/KUM.1/11/2018 (Tata Cara Perizinan Pembuangan Air Limbah Melalui Pelayanan Perizinan Berusaha Terintegrasi Secara Elektronik), which previously governed wastewater discharge permits through the OSS system. This regulatory consolidation eliminates regulatory overlap and conflicting procedural requirements that previously created compliance uncertainty for businesses operating across multiple environmental regulatory domains.
Matrix 5.1: Regulatory Supersession Framework
| Revoked Regulation | Subject Matter | Effective Date of Revocation | Transition Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| PERMENLHK P.102/2018 | Wastewater discharge permit procedures through OSS | April 1, 2021 | Existing permits remain valid until expiry; new applications follow PERMENLHK 5/2021 |
| [Five additional regulations] | Related environmental permitting procedures | April 1, 2021 | Consolidated under unified PERMENLHK 5/2021 framework |
The consolidation under PERMENLHK 5/2021 reflects broader Indonesian environmental policy trends toward integrated environmental permitting, where multiple environmental approvals previously issued separately are now coordinated through single regulatory instruments linked to business licensing. This integration reduces administrative burden for compliant businesses while strengthening enforcement capabilities by consolidating environmental compliance monitoring under unified reporting frameworks. The Technical Approval and SLO mechanism creates clear regulatory milestones—pre-operational technical compliance and post-operational performance verification—that facilitate targeted inspection and enforcement activities by environmental authorities at all jurisdictional levels.
Regulation Reference
Primary Regulation:
- Peraturan Menteri Lingkungan Hidup Dan Kehutanan Nomor 5 Tahun 2021 - Tata Cara Penerbitan Persetujuan Teknis Dan Surat Kelayakan Operasional Bidang Pengendalian Pencemaran Lingkungan
- Status: Active (Berlaku)
- Effective Date: April 1, 2021
- BPK Reference: 210999
Supporting Regulations:
- Peraturan Pemerintah Nomor 22 Tahun 2021 - Penyelenggaraan Perlindungan dan Pengelolaan Lingkungan Hidup
- Peraturan Menteri Lingkungan Hidup Dan Kehutanan Nomor P.68/MENLHK/SETJEN/KUM.1/8/2016 - Baku Mutu Air Limbah Domestik
Superseded Regulations:
- Peraturan Menteri Lingkungan Hidup Dan Kehutanan Nomor P.102/MENLHK/SETJEN/KUM.1/11/2018 (Revoked by PERMENLHK 5/2021)
Disclaimer: This analysis is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Businesses subject to PERMENLHK 5/2021 should consult with qualified environmental legal counsel and relevant environmental agencies to ensure full regulatory compliance. Regulatory interpretations may vary by jurisdiction, and specific facility circumstances may require additional environmental approvals beyond those discussed herein.
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