Mining policy may lead to lower grants<\/p>\n
Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The World Bank is warning that foreign donors may further reduce
\ntheir environmental grants to Indonesia in response to the
\ngovernment's recent decision to allow several mining firms to
\noperate in protected forests.<\/p>\n
Kathy MacKinnon, the World Bank's senior biodiversity
\nspecialist, said here on Monday that even before the mining firms
\nwere allowed to operate in protected forests, donors to Indonesia
\nwere already reluctant to earmark funds for the environment due
\nto unrest in various regions and illegal logging in conservation
\nareas.<\/p>\n
\"We can't give our funds to improve environmental conditions
\nwhere there is a high risk of not succeeding,\" she told The
\nJakarta Post on the sidelines of a workshop on Global Environment
\nFacility (GEF).<\/p>\n
She said the GEF, established in 1992 following the Earth
\nSummit in Rio de Janeiro and managed by the United Nations
\nDevelopment Program, was one of agencies that was unwilling to
\nprovide more grants to Indonesia.<\/p>\n
The GEF has canceled a project to maintain biodiversity in
\nMaluku due to the prolonged conflict there, halted a project in
\nWest Kalimantan due to unrest and recalled project objectives in
\nthe Kerinci Seblat national park in Sumatra, she said.<\/p>\n
Since GEF established representative here in 1992, it has
\ndisbursed over US$50 million in grants for environmental programs
\ncarried out by the government and non-governmental organizations.<\/p>\n
Indonesia receives environmental grants from a number of other
\nagencies as well, including USAID and the Asian Development Bank.<\/p>\n
MacKinnon urged the Indonesian government to foster good
\ngovernance to ensure its policies do not harm the environment,
\nwhich would in turn convince donors to provide additional grants.<\/p>\n
However, the government's approval to the six mining companies
\nto operate in protected forests will only discourage
\ninternational institutions from funding environmental protection
\nprograms in Indonesia, she said.<\/p>\n
Earlier this month, the House of Representatives approved the
\ngovernment's plan to allow at least six mining firms to resume
\nopen pit mining operations in protected forests in order to help
\npromote regional development.<\/p>\n
The six mining companies are: PT Weda Bay Nikel and PT Nusa
\nHalmahera (located in Maluku province), PT Gag Nikel (Papua), PT
\nGaluh Cempaka (South Kalimantan), PT Jorong Barutama (Papua) and
\nPT Barisan Tropical Mining (South Sumatra).<\/p>\n
To avoid violation of Law No. 41\/1999 on forestry, which
\nbanned open pit mining in protected forests, the House changed
\nthe status of the six firms' operating areas from protected
\nforests to production forests.<\/p>\n
Several NGOs have accused the government and the House of
\nbetraying the trust place in them by the people to protect the
\nforests, and have threatened to file a lawsuit.<\/p>\n
A senior adviser to the state minister for the environment,
\nAboejowono Aboeprajitno, said Indonesia would continue to receive
\nenvironmental grants from foreign donors if the government was
\nactive in promoting its environmental protection programs.<\/p>\n
\"Indonesia has the largest biodiversity in the world.
\nTherefore, our environment has become the focus of attention for
\nthe world. However, we lack the funds to manage our environment
\nproperly. So we must upgrade our skills if we want to get more
\nand more grants,\" he said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/mining-policy-may-lead-to-lower-grants-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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