Freeport & Newmont, largest suppliers of pollution in Eastern Indonesia
Wednesday, December 6 2000 - 04:00 AM WIB
Large mining activities conducted by gold and copper miner PT Freeport Indonesia and gold miner PT Newmont Minahasa Raya had caused the largest environmental pollution in Eastern Indonesia, according to the Environmental Impact Management Agency's (Bapedal) Regional III division.
The agency called it "severe" the environmental destruction in Freeport's concession areas in Timika, Irian Jaya, and Newmont's concession areas in North Sulawesi.
State Minister of Environment A. Sonny Keraf, who is also Bapedal chairman, said his party had been investigating environmental violations conducted by both Freeport and Newmont.
"Other cases of environmental pollution contributed by other companies are also under investigation. As for Freeport, the government has not yet produced a final decision," he said in Makassar on Tuesday (Nov 5).
Sonny said small-scaled gold mining activities in North Sulawesi had the potency to severely destroy the environment because such activities employed around 22,000 people, spreading in all regencies in North Sulawesi. Out of the 22,000 people involved in the small-scaled gold mining activities, 18,500 were illegal miners.
According to a report by Bapedal's Regional III division, C-category mineral mining activities in the agency's supervision areas - Sulawesi, Maluku and Irian Jaya -- had created serious land degradation and degradation over riverbanks. Besides, marble mining in South Sulawesi had also caused ecosystem destruction in the area.
Sonny said that he had met with all executives of Bapedal's Regional III division to improve supervision and monitoring of environmental management of all mining companies in Eastern Indonesia.
The companies that would be continuously monitored include PT Freeport Indonesia in Timika (Irian Jaya), PT Inco in Soroako (South Sulawesi), PT Semen Tonasa in Pangkep (South Sulawesi), PT Semen Bosowa Maros (South Sulawesi), PT Newmont Minahasa Raya (North Sulawesi), PT Aneka Tambang in Pomalaa (Southeast Sulawesi) and PT Gowa Makassar Tourism Development in Makassar (South Sulawesi). (*)