Govt urged to revoke PT MIL's investment permit
Ridwan Max Sijabat and Apriadi Gunawan The Jakarta Post/Medan
Environmentalists have called on the government to revoke the investment permit it has issued for a Singaporean investor who is developing an international tourist resort on land near Lake Toba because it is feared it will destroy the ecosystem and endanger villagers living on land lower than the project area.
Executive director of North Sumatra Environmental Forum Herwin Nasution said here on Thursday that the government had to revoke the investment permit and ask the management of PT Merek Indah Lestari to suspend the ongoing development project in Gorat Ni Padang, Merek, some 120 kilometers southeast of North Sumatra, because the tourist facilities, especially a golf course and a five-star hotel, were built on land in a protected forest.
He stressed that in accordance with Environmental Law, no development activities were allowed on such critical land because the tourist facilities were constructed on mountainous slopes and steep rocks that could bring disasters to hundreds of people living in Tongging, Pangambatan and Kodon-kodon, three villages which were located precisely below the location.
"Besides, PT MIL has also breached Law No. 41/1999 that prohibits any human activities in protected forests and parks, because a part of the tourist resort is included in the protected forest, which is home to numerous protected rare mammals," he said.
Jaya Arjuna, another environmental activist, said that in accordance with the sustainable development concept, development activities on critical land was tolerable as long as they did not cause environmental degradation and used environmentally friendly technology.
The Karo regental administration which issued the investment permit for PT MIL, should have determined what type of facilities were allowed to be developed on such critical land before issuing the permit.
"The local administration must stick to the spatial zoning it has made and conduct an analysis on what may be the negative impact on the environment," said Jaya.
Tendeanus, a member of the company's board of commissioners, conceded that his company had not yet obtained an Environmental Impact Analysis (Amdal) certificate from the local administration.
"We requested an Amdal certificate one year ago but so far, we have not received it. It is impossible for us to develop the tourist facilities without an Amdal certificate. What we are doing is to develop waterways to avoid landslides and flooding during the rainy season," he said on Wednesday.
During The Jakarta Post's field tour on Monday, it was seen that a bigger part of the tourist facilities was being constructed on land that should not be utilized for such construction projects, otherwise it may trigger natural disasters such as landslides and flooding that could threaten hundreds of residents in the three villages.
The North Sumatra provincial government and the Karo regental administration started on Wednesday to check the actual location of the development project since they have been at odds over the matter.
Based on its recent field tour, the provincial government defended its stance that a part of the project is included in the protected forest while the Karo regental administration said the large was earmarked for tourism and business activities.
Chief of the Karo regency's forestry office Ramli Sembiring said that the regental administration allowed PT MIL to develop an international tourist resort in Gorat Ni Padang in Merek, some 120 kilometers southeast of Medan, capital of North Sumatra province, last year after the company obtained an approval from the National Investment Coordinating Agency (Bapepam).
He said that the 200-hectare area which was given to PT MIL was not part of the protected forest because according to the regency's spatial zoning, the area may be utilized for tourist resorts and business activities.
He also said that the regental administration has allowed the company to develop an international-standard tourist resort with a five-hole golf course, five-star hotel, agropolitan house and interfaith religious park as the main facilities.
He conceded that the company, most of whose shares were dominated by a Singaporean investor, has not yet gained an Amdal certificate from the local administration.
Amdal, a prerequisite for all business and development activities, is a certificate issued based on an analysis of the possible negative impacts of projects on the environment.