Jakarta – Indonesia said on Thursday it had imposed a ban on sand exports to all countries in a bid to curb rampant mining which was causing damage to the environment.

"We have decided to stop sand exports from Indonesia to any country, including Singapore," Trade and Industry Minister Rini Soewandi told Reuters.

She said a decree on the ban was issued on February 28 but did not give further details. A trade ministry source said they had not decided how long the ban would last but would review it later. The ban will likely have a major impact on neighbouring Singapore which needs to import around 1.6 million cubic metres of sand a year for reclamation projects. Malaysia imports around 600 million cubic metres a year.

The sand is mostly used to support the building sector and for coastal reclamation. Indonesia temporarily halted sand exports for three months in February last year for the same reason, but the ministry source said there was considerable smuggling of sand then.

The source could not provide any figures on how much Indonesia earns from sand exports, but said it was not a key export.

Extensive sand mining in Indonesia, especially in the Riau islands off Sumatra, has also been blamed for the destruction of natural habitat in parts of the province and even for the disappearance of several small islands offshore.