Govt excludes mining firms from environmental audit<\/p>\n
Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The government has excluded mining companies from the 2002
\nenvironmental audit (PROPER) due to the lack of precise
\nindicators to measure the amount of damage they have caused to
\nthe environment, says an official.<\/p>\n
"We can assess mining firms based on pollution criteria, but
\nwe do not have clear indicators yet to appraise their
\nenvironmental destruction, and that is why the government has
\ndecided not to include mining companies on the list of firms to
\nbe audited in 2002," Deputy State Minister for the Environment
\nIsa Karmisa Ardiputra, who is in charge of the Management of
\nEnvironmental Impact from Institutional Sources, told reporters
\non Wednesday.<\/p>\n
The government reintroduced PROPER last year to inform the
\npublic about polluting companies, after the environmental audit
\nwas stopped in 1997 because of the economic crisis.<\/p>\n
The 2002 PROPER's results will be announced within the next
\ntwo weeks, said Isa.<\/p>\n
PROPER is an audit of companies' environmental performance
\nbased on air and water pollution, waste management and
\nenvironmental damages.<\/p>\n
A total of 85 companies had been listed to take part in the
\n2002 PROPER, 12 of which were mining firms. The remaining
\ncompanies are in the forestry and manufacturing sectors.<\/p>\n
The 12 mining firms that have been phased out from the 2002
\nPROPER are: PT Freeport Indonesia in Papua, PT Kaltim Prima Coal
\nand PT Kelian Equatorial Mining in East Kalimantan, PT Adaro and
\nPT Arutmin in South Kalimantan, PT INCO in South Sulawesi, PT
\nNewmont Nusa Tenggara in West Nusa Tenggara, PT Antam Pomala
\nKolaka in Southeast Sulawesi, PT Timah and Kobatin in Bangka
\nBelitung, PT Antam in West Java and PT Bukit Asam in South
\nSumatra.<\/p>\n
Isa said the government must establish clear criteria on
\nenvironmental destruction caused by mining firms.<\/p>\n
"For example, we should determine a measurement based on
\nchange in landscape, floods and forest destruction because of
\nmining operations," he said.<\/p>\n
KPC spokesman Drajat Panjawi and Newmont Nusa Tenggara
\nspokesman Heru Harjono said that their firms had not been
\ninformed by the Office of the State Minister for the Environment
\nabout the exclusion of mining firms from the 2002 PROPER list.<\/p>\n
Drajat added that principally, KPC was ready to undergo the
\n2002 PROPER.<\/p>\n
"We still support the program, as it will verify whether we
\ncare about our environment or not," he said.<\/p>\n
Isa said the 2002 PROPER showed that between 60 percent to 70
\npercent of the participants were polluters, but he declined to
\nidentify them.<\/p>\n
For example, he said, many firms in the forestry and
\nagriculture industry had failed to comply with hazardous waste
\nmanagement regulations and standards.<\/p>\n
"They may possess the facilities to collect, store and manage
\nthe hazardous waste for further use, but do not have any license
\nfrom the government to do so," he said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/govt-excludes-mining-firms-from-environmental-audit-1447893297",
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