Adaro's mining activities create polemic in South Kalimantan village

The massive protests launched by local residents against the operation of PT Adaro in Pulau Ku’u and Taming villages in the Tanta district, South Kalimantan have produced polemic among the villagers and the local authority, Banjarmasin Post reported on Friday.

The local people believed that the operation of the mining company was the main cause of the damages of over tens of hectares of rice fields in the village. The local villagers accused that the mining activities in the nearby Jejer Walu Mountain had caused heavy floods, which then put the rice fields under the water.

The flooding of the rice fields angered the local people who then put the law on their own hand after the mining company denied their accusation. In the protests, the villagers blocked the access road to the company’s operation. The company was forced to stop the coal supply to the nearby coal terminal due to the protest.

The local office of the environmental impact monitoring agency (Bappedal) however said that the damages of the rice fields had nothing to do with the operation of the company. It said that the flooding of the rice field was the normal consequence of the natural condition of the rice fields, which are located below their surrounding areas. As a result, when there is a heavy rain, the rice field will be automatically flooded. (*)