Mining firms urged to stop STD disposal

Mining firms urged to stop STD disposal

Wahyoe Boediwardhana, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar, Bali

Mining companies across the Asia-Pacific region are continuing to
use the submarine tailing deposit mining system, which will cost
countries both environmentally and socioeconomically, a noted
environmentalist has said.

Former environment minister Emil Salim said Indonesia was
unable to deal with the environmental hazards posed by the
submarine tailing deposit mining system.

Emil was speaking at a five-day meeting of the World Bank
Extractive Industries Review (EIR) in Nusa Dua, Bali.

The meeting aims to establish policy guidelines to make the
mining industry more environmentally friendly.

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) were invited, but at
least 12 NGOs walked out of the meeting on Sunday after the EIR
released a draft of the guidelines ahead of the meeting's
conclusion. NGOs said the draft favored mining companies at the
expense of the environment and indigenous people.

Emil blasted mining companies' continued use of the submarine
tailing disposal system.

"Most companies or parties operating in Indonesia's mining
industry use this system, which is clearly degrading the marine
and coastal environment," he told EIR participants.

The system is the most preferred waste disposal procedure in
regions with large-scale mining operations and rich marine
biodiversity, crucial for global marine conservation, such as in
Southeast Asia and South Pacific.

Emil said that the disposal system was seriously damaging
Indonesia's tropical marine life, marine resources and its
ecosystem.

"The most important problem is how to convince our government
to strictly regulate the system and to enforce the law because
almost two-thirds of Indonesia consists of water and oceans,"
Emil said.

Submarine tailing disposal is one of the main subjects being
discussed at the World Bank-initiated meeting, which began on
Saturday and closes on Wednesday.

The five-day meeting has brought together stakeholders from
civil society, governments, the industries as well as the World
Bank Group to discuss oil, gas and mining issues. The framework
for this discussion is the globally agreed consensus to pave the
way for sustainable development in the 21st century.

The World Bank initiated the Extractive Industries Review and
consultative process to obtain and understand the views of
stakeholders about the best future role of the World Bank Group
in the extractive industries if it is to promote sustainable
development and poverty alleviation.

Currently, the World Bank Group is supporting worldwide
governments, especially developing ones, and industries to
develop extractive industry sectors. On the other hand, a group
of international organizations are calling on the World Bank
Group to divest itself from extractive industry projects, based
on the observation that the exploitation of oil, gas and mining
in developing countries is not compatible to the Group's mission
to eradicate poverty.

"Exploitation of oil, gas and mining resources under various
conditions can result in a multitude of social problems and
serious environmental degradation," the organizations said in a
statement.

Citing an example, they said mining companies, especially
those operating in small and remote islands in Indonesia, often
dump waste directly into the sea without processing it.

Benyamin Kahn, the director for APEX Environmental Indonesia
Oceanic Cetacean Program, said that the agency's study found the
majority of fish taken from waters around Sumbawa, West Nusa
Tenggara and North Sulawesi were contaminated with mining
disposal waste.

"Japan has rejected fish exports because of chemical
contamination," the study revealed.

Emil said both governments and industries should be held
responsible for preserving the environment.