Kupang – The Indonesian Environmental Forum (Walhi) has urged East Nusa Tenggara Governor Frans Leburaya to revoke the operation permit for mining company PT Fathi Resources, which is being blamed for environmental destruction in East Sumba regency.

Walhi said its investigation revealed that Fathi Resources had damaged the protected forest where 114 springs that provided water for local residents were located.

"The widely known tropical birds in Sumba will be extinct if the mining operation continues. They will become a lost heritage, only to be told about to later generations," Herry Naif, Walhi programming manager, said on Saturday.

Around 1,000 residents from several villages tried to intervene in the mining operation on Thursday, which, according to Walhi, confirmed the locals' outrage at the company.