Legislative body to summons Arutmin

The South Kalimantan Legislative Council plans to summons the management of mining company PT Arutmin over reports that the company has produced above-normal pollution to the environment, according to deputy speaker Mangku Prasetyo.

"If the report from the South Kalimantan's Health Department is proven true, we, the Council's leaders, will task Commission A to handle the problem by summoning (Arutmin's management)," Mangku said on Tuesday (Jan. 9).

Mangku, however, could not give a definite date when the Council would summons Arutmin's management. He only said that the summons should be sent soon as the air pollution from Arutmin's mining operation in Sungau Danau village in Satui subdistrict, Kotabaru district, could endanger people in its surrounding area.

Earlier, the head of the South Kalimantan's health department, dr. H Zairullah Azhar, said that based on his office's August 2000 survey, coal dust produced by Arutmin had breached the allowed level of 0.26 mg/m3. The pollution created by Arutmin had reached 9.5 mg/m3.

"The level set by the state minister of environment through a decree No. 2/88 is 0.26mg/m3, but the miner has breached the level dozens of times," he said on Monday (Jan. 8).

Because of the pollution, Zairullah said, people could suffer from various diseases. The pollution could cause at least six illnesses, including respiratory inspection and digestion infection.

"What's more dangerous is when those diseases hit children. If those children are hit, how about the future of human resources there?" he said. (*)