S. Kalimantan coal miners apply permits to operate in protected forests

At least 75 coal mining companies which hold mining authority (KP) license in South Kalimantan have applied for permits to carry out mining activities in protected forests to the ministry of forestry, Kompas reported on Monday.

The mining companies, which account for about 85 percent of the coal miners operating under the local governments' licenses, rushed for the forestry permits following the South Kalimantan governor's strong warning recently to take a serious action against mining firms operating in the protected forests.

Sony Partono, head of the local mining office, said in Banjarmasin last week that almost all parts of the 75 coal mining companies' concession areas overlap with forest conservation areas.

"In order to be able to carry out mining operation in the protected, they have to obtain permits from the ministry of forestry," he said. He, however, said that only six of the companies had so far met the technical requirement to apply for the permits because most of them did not possess satellite image of their mining areas and environmental impact analysis (Amdal) documents.

Earlier, South Kalimantan Governor Rudy Ariffin has instructed regents and mayors in the province to close down all coal mining companies that operate with mining authority (KP) license until the contractors meet the new conditions.

Under the decision letter of the ministry of forestry no 14, year 2006, all contractors who hold KP license are obliged to meet the conditions on the lease of forest area. The letter also said that a contractor with KP license which fails to meet one of the conditions, then the license will be deemed illegal and subject to revocation. (*)