'Newmont ignored mercury warnings'

'Newmont ignored mercury warnings'

Sari P. Setiogi and Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Mining company PT Newmont Minahasa Raya ignored repeated warnings
about the environmental dangers of its tailings, a marine toxic
expert said on Monday.

"We conducted research in 1994 when the company had just
started its exploration. Our research showed the mercury level
found in fish in Buyat Bay reached 0.02 parts per billion (ppb),"
said Rizald Max Rompas from Sam Ratulangie State University in
Manado, North Sulawesi.

The normal mercury level in fish, according to Rizald, ranges
between zero and 0.01 ppb.

Another study in 1998 -- two years after the company began
its operations in Minahasa, North Sulawesi -- found the mercury
levels in fish in Buyat Bay had increased to 0.1 ppb.

"We already warned the company and the local government about
the contamination, but it is still in business," said Rizald.

"It (the mercury level) is getting higher and higher. The
impact will not be seen now but in the next 10 to 20 years, as
the mercury transforms into methylmercury. It could possibly
become like Minamata disease if nothing is done now," the
researcher warned.

However, Rizald said the symptoms exhibited by sick Buyat Bay
residents pointed to arsenic contamination rather than mercury
contamination.

"Arsenic is more reactive to the skin," he said.

Minamata disease is a neurological disorder caused by
methylmercury poisoning, the more hazardous form of mercury.

A number of non-governmental organizations have accused PT
Newmont Minahasa Raya of contaminating Buyat Bay with mercury.
The company disposes of its tailings in the bay.

Laboratory tests conducted by the University of Indonesia, the
Jakarta Health Agency and the National Police found that both
local residents and the water of Buyat Bay contained elevated
levels of mercury and arsenic, causing concern that residents
were at risk of Minamata disease.

The company has denied the allegations, saying that its
tailings are free from hazardous waste.

Rizald said it was possible the mercury in Buyat Bay came from
Newmont. "Most likely the company is using mercury in its gold
processing. Mercury can naturally be found in the soil, but not
in the water. It is possible the mercury came from debris from
the hill, but it would not be easy (to contaminate the water)."

Newmont has denied using mercury in its gold processing,
saying it uses cyanide.

The Submarine Tailing Disposal (STD) system employed by
Newmont is another source of controversy, said Rizald. The STD
system is a technique for dumping tailings into the sea through a
submerged pipe.

"Back in 1994, I had an argument with the AMDAL team about
this STD. They said the tailings would be safely disposed under
the thermocline layer, which could be found at a depth of 60
meters in the water," he said.

AMDAL is an environmental impact analysis, which new companies
are required to complete before beginning their operations.
However, in many cases companies have been allowed to begin
operations despite environmental warnings contained in the AMDAL.

Most mining companies claim the natural thermocline barrier
prevents tailings from resurfacing. The thermocline is a layer in
the ocean where temperatures decrease rapidly, and which acts as
a natural barrier.

"It is very much impossible to have a thermocline layer in
water that is 60 meters deep, particularly in a tropical country
like Indonesia," Rizald said.

Earlier in the day, the National Police announced they would
continue their investigation into the Buyat case until they
determined the source of the contamination and the parties
responsible for this contamination.

National Police chief of detectives Comr. Gen. Suyitno Landung
Sujono said that although the government had formed a joint team
to conduct a thorough analysis of the bay, the police would
continue with their own investigation.

"We don't stop an investigation just because the government
forms a joint team. We have questioned several more witnesses,
including experts and people from PT Newmont, to enable us to
complete the case file," Suyitno said.

He said the police were now concentrating on determining the
source of the contamination, before determining who was
responsible for the contamination.