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Govt split over Raja Ampat mining concessions
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Small islands are seen in Raja Ampat, West Papua, a popular tourist site renowned for pristine waters.
(The Jakarta Post/Jerry Adiguna)
T
he government’s commitment to environmental protection is now in question after two key ministries and local officials gave conflicting accounts of alleged environmental violations by nickel mining operations on Gag Island in the Raja Ampat archipelago, one of the world's top marine biodiversity hot spots.
The social media hashtag #SaveRajaAmpat went viral last week after Greenpeace Indonesia launched a campaign against nickel mining activities on Gag Island, with several videos showing aerial shots of formerly crystal-clear waters clouded with pale, milky sediment and shoreline scars where lush rainforest had been cleared.
While the island is located 5 kilometers outside the Raja Ampat marine park, which harbors an estimated 75 percent of the world’s known coral species, environmentalists insist that damage to its marine ecosystem could still impact the protected park in Southwest Papua province.
In an apparent effort to defuse public outrage, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia, along with several officials from his office, visited Gag Nikel’s Raja Ampat mining site on Saturday to “see the situation firsthand” and to ensure transparency in government oversight.
Gag Nikel, a subsidiary of state-owned diversified miner Antam, is the only company with a mining license in Raja Ampat that is actively producing nickel. It began operations in 2018 after securing a contract in 1998 and an environmental permit in 2014. Its license covers the entirety of Gag Island, a protected tropical rainforest.
Speaking after the site inspection, the ministry’s director general for minerals and coal Tri Winarno, who accompanied Bahlil on the trip, said preliminary findings showed no sedimentation or signs of environmental damage at the mining site.
“From what we observed, there was no sedimentation along the coastal area. So overall, there is no issue with this mine,” Tri said. “The [mine] reclamation work here also appears to be in good shape.”
