Home / Disasters and Accidents / Sumatra Disaster: Mining Permits Under Fire Amid Deforestation
Sumatra Disaster: Mining Permits Under Fire Amid Deforestation
4 Dec
Summary
- Revocation of mining permits threatened for rule violators in Sumatra.
- Deforestation linked to mining is suspected of worsening deadly floods.
- Cyclone-induced floods and landslides killed about 800 in Sumatra.
Deadly floods and landslides on Sumatra island, triggered by cyclones, have resulted in around 800 fatalities and hundreds missing, prompting Indonesia's energy minister to threaten the revocation of mining permits for any companies found in violation of regulations. The disaster has raised serious questions about the role of deforestation, particularly linked to mining and illegal logging, in exacerbating the catastrophe.
Environment Minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq highlighted that environmental damage and shrinking forest cover across the three worst-affected provinces contributed to the worsening conditions. Images of logs washing ashore in Sumatra after the floods have fueled public outrage, with environmental groups like JATAM pointing to extensive legal permits for converting forests into extraction zones.
While one permit holder, PT Agincourt Resources, has dismissed direct links between its operations and the floods as premature, data indicates significant forest loss on Sumatra. Between 2001 and 2024, the island lost an area of forest larger than Switzerland, underscoring concerns about the impact of resource extraction on ecological stability and disaster vulnerability.
