Antara News, Monday, October 18, 2010 07:52 WIB
Kolaka, SE Sulawesi (ANTARA News) - Laboroko Island in Wolo subdistrict, Kolaka district, Southeast Sulawesi province, may some day sink due to careless mining that violated the 2007 Marine regulation no 27 about small island development.
The mining activities of PT Duta Nusa in Laboroko island will soon drown the island, coordinator of Forum Swadaya Masyarakat (Forsda), a Non Governmental Organization, Jabir said here.
Besides disrupting marine habitats of the island, the mining also reduced the income of the fishermen who depend on the preservation of the island, he said.
"Many fishermen in the region suffer great losses due to the distance they have to cover in fishing and some seaweed farmers couldn`t farm as sea water has become polluted," he said.
Control by the mining environment management was lacking as the environment impact analysis (AMDAL) which served as one of the requirements of mining operations were not taken into account, he said.
Meanwhile, head of the General Mining Office of Kolaka, Ishak Nurdin confirmed that there were regulations on small island protection.
However, he also said that the mining enterprise in Laboroko island followed the mining regulation as a strong basis to for mining.
The Office had acted firmly against inappropriate mining that violated the regulation by ceasing the activities, he said.
"The regional autonomy regulation gives authority to the local administration to harness and manage the natural resources for the people`s welfare. This policy is also written in the preamble of the 1945 Constitutions," he said.
