On mining waste
On mining waste
Statements by PT Meares Soputan Mining ( The Jakarta Post,
Dec. 8 ) about its Toka Tindung operations deserve further
comment.
This gold mine plans to dump some six to eight million tonnes
of mining waste into the pristine waters of Rinondoran Bay in
North Sulawesi. The process of gold extraction will use cyanide
heap leaching. It is nonsense for PT MSM to say that these
tailings will be "similar in character to sediments on the sea
bed".
These wastes, containing cyanide compounds plus arsenic and
heavy metals, will not stay on the sea bed as an inert heap.
There is a high risk they will enter the food chain. Seas around
North Sulawesi are subject to tropical storms and strong
currents; frequent earth tremors affect the ocean floor.
It is also misleading for Meares Soputan Mining to state that
the tailings "will comply with Indonesian and international
standards". The company's own report shows that the mine tailings
will contain 23 micrograms/liter dissolved copper -- three times
the new Marine Water Criteria for the ASEAN region.
Indonesia does not possess marine sediment quality guidelines,
but the tailings will exceed American NOAA Guidelines for
chromium and manganese. In other words, this mine would not be
allowed in other countries because it could not meet water
quality criteria.
Meares Soputan Mining, owned by the British-registered company
Archipelago Resources, has already begun to construct a harbor at
Rinondoran, even though it has no license for the disposal of
toxic wastes. Its Environmental Impact Assessment is not valid as
it was carried out over seven years ago to fulfill the basic
minimum requirements and there was no public consultation. Armed
police from the local Police Mobile Brigade (Brimob) units are
being paid to protect this development of a public beach.
More than 10,000 local people have signed a petition to stop
the mine. They fear they will suffer the same fate as the Buyat
community where Newmont dumped its mining waste. They want to
decide their own future, not to be the objects of "socialization"
and "community development projects" determined by the company.
They want sustainable livelihoods, not the promise of five years
of wealth from a gold mine followed by a legacy of irreparably
damaged land and poisoned waters. They want to develop their
fishing, agriculture and tourism potential.
The Meares Soputan Mining concession overlaps the Tangkoko-Dua
Saudara National Park with its dense tropical forests and unique
wildlife. I have been lucky enough to go there -- it is a
beautiful and special place. Local people have set up eco-tourism
ventures dependent on the extraordinary variety of marine life.
Foreign and Indonesian-owned mining companies should behave
more responsibly to communities and their environments. Indonesia
has signed international conventions on biodiversity protection;
economic, social and cultural rights; and civil and political
rights. The government should fulfil its responsibilities under
these agreements and respect the wishes of the local communities
by stopping Meares Soputan Mining's Toka Tindung activities now
and refusing to issue permits for sub-sea tailings disposal
throughout Indonesia.
FRANCES CARR, Down to Earth, London