Illegal mining tests Indonesia’s resolve on new capital Nusantara
A new task force aims to tackle the issue, but experts warn it will be difficult to crack down on a practice often backed by law enforcement
Nusantara spans more than 252,000 hectares (622,705 acres), but over 13,000 hectares of forest area have been damaged by “irresponsible hands” that carried out illegal mining and farming, according to Inspector General Edgar Diponegoro, head of the Nusantara Authority for Public Security and Safety.
Unlawful farms damaged 8,338 hectares of forest, while 4,236 hectares were destroyed by illegal mines, he told reporters on October 29.
According to Diponegoro, his task force aims to prevent illegal mining and farming in the new capital, enforce the law on perpetrators, and rehabilitate the degraded lands. Monitoring stations have been set up at 10 locations across Nusantara and are manned by personnel from the Nusantara authority and local residents.