Rendi Akhmad Witular, Jakarta – The government may take legal action against PT Freeport Indonesia, a local unit of US giant Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold Inc., if the gold and copper miner is found to have polluted the environment near its mining concession in Papua.
State Minister for the Environment Rachmat Witoelar said Monday the ministry was conducting a follow-up investigation after preliminary evidence of toxic pollution was detected near the mining site.
"If Freeport refuses or fails to comply (with the existing environmental regulations), we will prosecute them," said Rachmat on the sidelines of the swearing-in ceremony of new military chief Air Marshal Djoko Suyanto at the State Palace.
However, the high-ranking Golkar Party of the 1980s said resorting to prosecution would only be made after the government gave Freeport the right to answer any accusations or comply with the regulations if it was at fault.
Environmental officials earlier disclosed evidence that Freeport allegedly disposed mining waste in the Otomina River, located near its Grasberg mining site, endangering biodiversity and public health in surrounding areas. The ministry is now carrying out another investigation to obtain more substantial evidence.
Freeport Indonesia spokesman Siddharta Moersjid said the company would cooperate with the ministry to resolve the problem. "We will work cooperatively with the environment ministry to address any concerns they may have, as we have always done in the past. We share the same goal, which is to continually improve environmental management," he said Monday.
Rachmat has a record of challenging corporate polluters, including PT Newmont Minahasa Raya, a local unit of another US gold miner Newmont Mining Corp., by filling a US$133.6 million civil suit. The South Jakarta District Court rejected the suit in November, with the two sides working on an amicable settlement.
On Friday, Vice President Jusuf Kalla demanded Freeport increase the revenue it shares with the government from the Papua mines amid higher prices of copper and gold. Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro earlier threatened to review the company's contract if there was evidence of violations of environmental regulations.
The government is planning to set up an interdepartmental team with a task to review the revenue portion received by the government and administrations in Papua from the company, as well as investigate the pollution allegation.
Freeport also faced negative publicity after a December report in the New York Times that the company had made payments of nearly US$20 million to the Indonesian military and police officers to protect its mining site.