Indonesia to allow mining beneath rainforests

By Arti Ekawati & Fidelis E Satriastanti Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan on Tuesday defended a presidential decision to open protected forests to development, saying only underground mining activities would be allowed, thus minimizing damage to the environment. The regulation, which has reportedly been signed by the president, is yet to be issued, he said, adding that strict requirements will have to be met by companies before they are allowed to conduct underground mining. “The regulation will only allow mining activities to operate under the forest areas. So this is not for open mining and hopefully will only bring a minimum impact to the ecosystem in protected forests,” said Zulkifli, adding that the regulation will be implemented soon. He said the regulation would oblige companies to provide lands in exchange for their mining areas and strictly prohibited them from damaging the forests above ground. “Because of the lack of regulations, most of the areas were being exploited without considering reforestation,” he said. “In addition, they will be obliged to pay taxes for operating mines under the protected forest.” …

Opening of Indonesia’s Protected Forests Defended via Treehugger