Newmont's dumping site should be operated under tight regulation

PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara's undersea dumping site in the Alas Strait off Sumbawa island, West Nusa Tenggara Barat (NTB) province should be operated under a tight regulation to ensure that its operation will not cause a negative impact to the people and the environment, an environmental expert at the University of Mataram has suggested.

Lalu satriawan Sahak said in Mataram late last week that such a regulation should be issued by the local government because the existing environmental guidelines, which were issued by the central government did not really reflect the real situation.

"It is understandable if Newmont claims that its dumping site is safe. The dumping site might be safe in early years of its operation, but who can guarantee that it will remain safe within the next ten years," he was quoted as saying by the Bali Post daily on Monday.

He acknowledged that the United States-based mining operator would bring much contribution to the local economy. But he said that billions of rupiah in royalties paid by the company would be meaningless if the impact of its operation caused a major destruction to the environment. "If it happens, it is the local people who will suffer the most," he added, citing that an undersea dumping site in the Marimata in Japan had not only caused a major problem to the environment but had also caused sufferings to the local people in more than a generation.

The issuance of a special regulation by the local government became more urgent, given the results of the survey recently issued by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on the toxic level of the mineral waste dumped into the dumping site, he said. According to the Manila-based bank's survey, the toxic level of the company's dumping site in the Alas Strait had exceeded the maximum level issued by the minister of environmental affairs. (*)