Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post 4 Feb 10;
Most small-scale coal mining enterprises operating in East and South Kalimantan have failed to comply with environmental law, says a report from the Environment Ministry.
The preliminary report released by a fact-finding team from the State Environment Ministry shows a number of big companies have also failed to reclaim mining pits before they abandon them.
“We are still compiling information on violations involving coal mining enterprises in Kalimantan provinces,” Ilyas Asaad, deputy for environmental compliance at the ministry told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.
He said the civil service investigators (PPNS) found that most small coal mining firms did not have environmental impact analysis (Amdal) reports, an obligatory document needed to determine whether the business activities of a firm were environmentally feasible in a particular area.
“Environmental management scheme [UKL] documents and the environmental monitoring scheme [UPL] reports are yet to be issued by local environmental agencies for most of the companies,” he said.
“The team also found that a number of major coal mining firms are still half-hearted about reclaiming their mining sites.
“This is strong evidence that illegal mining practises in Kalimantan are rife,” he said.
Business licenses for small-scale mining firms are issued by the governor, regent or mayor.
Business permits for the big coal mining firms are issued by the central government in Jakarta.
Statistics from the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) shows that 1,180 small-scale mining companies operate in East Kalimantan along with 33 major coal mining firms.
In South Kalimantan, there are over 400 small-scale coal mining firms and about 427 small coal mining firms in southeast Kalimantan.
State Environment Minister Gusti Muhammad Hatta pledged to enforce the 2009 law to reprimand coal mining firms violating the environmental law.
Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan also promised to withdraw businesses’ permits if coal mining firms failed to take responsibility for their abandoned pits.
Illyas admitted there was no coordination among officials from various ministries during the investigation in Kalimantan.
Walhi executive director Walhi Berry Furgon said he was skeptical the government was serious about taking legal action against recalcitrant mining companies in Kalimantan.
“Unless President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono makes a breakthrough, nothing will happen,” he told the Post.
Berry, who was also the former director of Kalimantan’s Walhi branch, said that he had once reported the violations by coal mining firms in South Kalimantan to the government.
“But there was no response and coal miners only expanded their business to other provinces in Kalimantan,” he said.
He said the President needed to support the state environment minister to resolve the long-standing environmental problems in Kalimantan.
The State Environment Ministry said it would use its new authority, as stated in the 2009 Environmental Law, which gives the ministry the authority to revoke the business permits.
