Unveiling Climate Change Impacts Caused By Mining Expansion On Sumbawa Island

Mining is the backbone of the economy in developing countries that have abundant natural resources such as gold, gas, silver, etc. There are a number of potential profits, either in the economy or in society.

Nggeboe (2011) conveys that due to the dominating effect of the existence of businesses that have been able to stimulate and push the community's economic elements, the welfare of the community in mining areas has typically improved. The community's social structure has changed as a result of the influx of newcomers who work as miners' employees or locals who open businesses close to the mines. This is because the locals living near mining areas are motivated to adapt to the shifting social structure. 

Meanwhile, Anggariani, Sahar, and Sayful (2020) state that the development of infrastructure is often done to improve society's welfare even further. They also add that the absence of the elements of feasibility studies and environmental impact analyses, however, may result in harm to the local community's ecology, economy, and sociocultural traditions.

Unfortunately, the main characteristic of the mining industry is that it is an unrenewable industry that is only temporary. If the local society is heavily dependent on a big company, when the activity of mining is over, the society's development around the mining scope will undergo deindustrialization, as depicted by stopping both social and economic activities (Sudjojo, 2007). 

The phenomenon is happening in my region, Sumbawa, because there is a lot of legal and illegal mining on Sumbawa Island. One of the most renowned and biggest legally operating companies is PT Amman Mineral, which has operated since 1986. The company officially launched its stock market on the Indonesian stock exchange in July 2023, with the Emiten Code (AMMN).

Sandria (2023) insists that it is known that AMMN issued 63.28 million lots (8.80%) of new shares that were sold to the public for 1,695 each, equal to 11 USD per lot. Furthermore, this indicates that, before subtracting listing fees and other costs, the total emissions obtained in this IPO were IDR 10.73 trillion, equal to 700 million USD.

Besides, according to the official website of Amman Mineral (n.d.), until 2023, the company contributed 17% of the local province’s regional state budget, West Nusa Tenggara, and 85% of the local regency's state budget, West Sumbawa. However, funding assistance cannot also be allocated endlessly because natural resources are limited. Coupled with the fact that various effects of mining activities will make it worse.  

Citing Riyandanu (2022), he published an article entitled “Accused of Dumping Hundreds of Thousand Tons of Waste into the Sea, This Is Amman's Response,”  Which highlights suspicion of mining activities where mining wastes are thrown into the seashore beyond agreeable levels. The issue has been expressed by the House of Representatives  (DPR) and Associated non-government organizations; who jointly convey the notion that around 120,000 tons of waste are being thrown into the sea each day. PT Amman Mineral has however faulted the statement.

The data which states around 120,000 is not an invalid resource because the data collected by Adian Napitupulu's, Commission 4 of the House of Representatives, had inquired about this from local residents. Most of them are fishermen, who were affected by environmental pollution from the practice of tailings production in Senunu Bay. "We need to examine it, it's just that conducting an environmental investigation is not easy," said Adian. 

Therefore, based on the phenomenon, an innovative and transformative approach has to be built to know how to minimize the impact of climate change issues on mining activities across Sumbawa Island. One method of solving this problem that can readily be implemented is using eco-friendly equipment. Mining companies can switch to more environmentally friendly equipment if they want to reduce their environmental impact - even if at the level of emissions.

A viable alternative is electric-powered mining equipment, which frequently equals or exceeds the power of diesel-powered rivals (Nichols, 2020). He also says that the use of electric engines instead of diesel ones has the potential to significantly reduce CO2 emissions caused by mining operations. With the growing selection of environmentally friendly options provided by manufacturers, it is clear that the mining industry has no reason not to adopt electric machinery.

A leading manufacturer of mining equipment from Sweden, Epiroc, has made progress in this regard with its ambitious goal of completing electrification with zero emissions soon. By 2025, Epiroc wants to have battery-powered versions of every piece of underground mining equipment the company makes available (Epiroc, n.d.). Therefore, the technology should be used to reduce the impact of climate change not only at PT Amman Mineral Mining but also at other mining companies.   

REFERENCES 

1. Amman Mineral. (n.d.). Amman Mineral. https://www.amman.co.id/ 
2. Anggariani, D., Sahar, S., & Sayful, M. (2020). Tambang Pasir dan Dampak Sosial Ekonomi Masyarakat di Pesisir Pantai. SIGn Journal of Social Science, 1(1), 15-29.  https://doi.org/10.37276/sjss.v1i1.96 
3. Nggeboe, F. (2011). Dampak Sosial Ekonomi Penambangan Batubara. Jurnal Lex Specialis, (14), 43-51. http://jih.unbari.ac.id/index.php/LEX_SPECIALIST/article/view/84 
4. Nichols, M. R. (2020). 5 Ways to Make Mining More Sustainable. Empowering Pumps and Equipment. retrieve August 11 2023 from https://empoweringpumps.com/5-ways-to-make-mining-more-sustainable/
5. Riyandanu, M. F. (2022). Dituding Buang Limbah Ratusan Ribu Ton ke Laut, Ini Respons Amman. Katadata.co.id. retrieve August 11 2023 from https://katadata.co.id/ameidyonasution/berita/636d1d289d06f/dituding-buang-limbah-ratusan-ribu-ton-ke-laut-ini-respons-amman 
6. Sandria, F. (2023). Ini Dia Daftar Calon Crazy Rich Baru dari IPO Amman Mineral. CNBC Indonesia. retrieve August 11 2023 from https://www.cnbcindonesia.com/market/20230707085434-17-452155/ini-dia-daftar-calon-crazy-rich-baru-dari-ipo-amman-mineral  
7. Sudjojo, N. (2007). The social environment management effort to build the capacity of local community around mine through community development: case study on Pt. Newmont Nusa Tenggara. Dissertation, unpublished. Malang Muhammadiyah University.  https://lib.ui.ac.id/detail.jsp?id=97015 
8. Epiroc supports new world standard in sustainable underground mining with yet another battery-electric order. (n.d.). Epiroc. https://www.epiroc.com/en-kw/newsroom/2021/epiroc-supports-new-world-standard-in-sustainable-underground-mining-with-yet-another-battery-electric-order