Pollution at Adaro under investigation

State Minister for Environment Gusti Muhammad Hatta has sent a special team to investigate the pollution at Balangan river in South Kalimantan allegedly caused by PT Adaro Indonesia, one of the country?s major coal producers, Kompas.com reported.

?We have dispatched a team to investigate into the alleged pollution and determine the losses it has caused,? the minister said during a visit in the province?s capital of Banjarmasin on Saturday.

Hatta said that the team which was currently surveying the water quality at the Balangan river had identified that the pollution might be caused by inadequate waste management facilities at the coal mining company.

?During heavy rains, the waste facilities were flooded, causing pollution in the river water. They are now being repaired,? he added.

The minister said that the company needed to improve the capacity of the existing waste management facilities to ensure that the waste would not spill over during the rainy season.

With the implementation of the new Environmental Law No. 32/2009, the Office of State Minister of the Environment has the power to investigate pollution and if there is strong evidence, it is allowed to arrest the wrong doers and take them to courts. (*)