Dinhut Babel cracks down on illegal tin mining in the HLP area
Tanjungpandan (ANTARA) - The Forestry Service (Dinhut) of Bangka Belitung has cracked down on illegal tin ore mining activities in the Coastal Protected Forest (HLP) area of Desa Juru Seberang, Tanjungpandan.
Head of the Coastal Protection Forest Management Unit (KPHL) Belantu Mendanau Belitung, Dedi Ilhamsyah, in Tanjungpandan, Belitung, on Thursday said that the crackdown on traditional tin ore mining activities without official permit is a concrete measure to safeguard the coastal forest area from environmental damage threats.
The crackdown on tin ore mining in the Coastal Protected Forest (HLP) area of Desa Juru Seberang, he said, involved the Tri Cakti Field Unit (Satlap) Belitung Sector and the Forestry Police (Polhut) Belitung.
“In that area, the team forced the cessation of tin mining without permits carried out by a number of residents, the mining activity is about one kilometre from the road to Desa Juru Seberang,” he explained.
He admitted that to reach the coastal protected forest area the team must proceed with caution as it involves traversing a muddy road, making it difficult to access using motor vehicles.
According to him, the team conducting the crackdown dismantled mining machines and equipment and there was no further activity here. The identity cards (KTP) and workers’ details were documented by personnel of the Field Unit.
Meanwhile, the Tri Cakti Satlap stated that the crackdown in Desa Juru Seberang was carried out recognising that the coast is prone to erosion due to damaged mangrove vegetation and beach trees.
“This area is a HLP. If it is damaged, ongoing erosion will occur, there will be no barrier and everything could become the sea. So, the HLP must be preserved, because as a result of you mining, all trees here die and become damaged,” he said.
It was explained that this joint operation continues to prioritise persuasive and dialogical approaches to touch miners’ awareness not to damage the ecosystem.
As a solution for the community’s sustainable economy, the Tri Cakti Satlap directed the miners to immediately switch to legal mining locations with official legal backing.
He emphasised that, in principle, the government does not prohibit people from engaging in tin ore mining, provided that the activities meet government-set requirements.