Walhi unhappy with Freeport audit
Walhi unhappy with Freeport audit
JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Forum for Environment (Walhi) has
called for an independent team to verify the findings of an
environmental audit on mining giant PT Freeport Indonesia.
In a statement released yesterday, the outspoken environment
group urged the creation of a verification team to study the
data, and said that the team has to be "transparent and
accountable."
Walhi's call was a reaction to the release last week of a
mostly favorable audit report on Freeport by environmental
consultant Dames and Moore.
Based on ministerial decree No. 42/1994 the audit has to be
verified by a government study. State Minister of Environment
Sarwono Kusumaatmadja has called the requirement "just a
formality".
Sarwono has also expressed his confidence that the government
audit "would not encounter any trouble" in its verification,
citing the reputation and trust that Dames and Moore has acquired
worldwide through the years.
He also said last Friday that there was no need for an
independent audit to be undertaken.
Contrary to some claims in the audit, Walhi contends that
Freeport is not advancing toward a "best practice in mining".
Dames and Moore was commissioned to conduct the audit in
September to assess the environmental impacts of Freeport's
mining operations in Irian Jaya. The U.S.-based company operates
one of the world's largest copper and gold mines in Timika, Irian
Jaya.
The final audit report proved to be quite favorable to
Freeport, as it cited that the company is now demonstrating a
much greater commitment to environmental management in its Irian
operations.
The most contentious issue in the audit, and focused on by
Walhi yesterday, was the tailings disposed of by the mining into
the surrounding rivers. The audit stresses that the tailings are
non-toxic.
The environment group maintains that the audit contradicts
itself when it then says in a later section that the dissolved
copper concentrations affected lower rivers and estuaries to the
point that they could potentially harm aquatic ecosystems.
Furthermore, the fact that Dames and Moore urged an ecological
risk assessment for indications of elevated copper levels in the
Minajerwi estuary, underlines another point of serious concern,
the group said.
Walhi went on to question the fact that Dames and Moore only
defined the toxicity of the tailings based on the content of
toxic chemicals such as cyanide.
"Dames and Moore did not take into account the non-lethal
characteristics. It did not distinguish between lethal and non-
lethal toxins," Walhi said.
If substances such as copper become a non-lethal toxin they
would be accumulated in the body of a consuming fish and possibly
cause a bio-accumulation which could lead to gene mutation which
in the end is detrimental to bio-diversity, the pressure group
pointed out.
Walhi further claimed that even though the actual
concentration of copper is small compared to the total tailings
being dumped per day, the accumulative effects of such a practice
could be harmful.
Putting aside the question of toxicity, Walhi maintained that
Indonesian law defines tailings as waste and thus its dispensing
into the rivers is illegal.
Dames and Moore vice-president Paul Whincup told The Jakarta
Post he appreciated the comments but also questioned Walhi's
technical qualifications in making such an assessment.
"We do not fully understand what positive outcome these
comments have in enhancing the recommendations made in the report
or indeed the technical qualifications and experience of the
Walhi representatives making the comments," he said.
Whincup added that "in all material respects Walhi is
factually in error in their comments."
He said Dames and Moore would be willing to meet with Walhi to
provide technical explanations and discuss in more detail the
positive outcome of the audit recommendations. (mds)