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Indonesia continues toxic battle with Newmont
December 15, 2004
Jakarta - Indonesia on Wednesday accused mining giant Newmont of corporate crime by turning a blind eye to arsenic pollution ahead of a major court battle in which executives of the US firm face possible jail terms.
Environment officials in Jakarta said the world's largest gold mining company had failed to properly dispose of waste from its operations in Buyat Bay in Indonesia's Sulawesi province, causing widespread sickness in residents.
The accusations are the latest to be levelled at Newmont in a rumbling dispute over Buyat which recently saw five executives detained for a month. All face up to six years' jail if found guilty in a trial due to start in January.
Newmont insists pollution of the bay, which activists say has caused the deaths of 30 people, was the result of other illegal operations in the area, while the US embassy has said the arrests will harm Indonesia's global image.
Environment ministry official Masnellyarti Hilman said Wednesday researchers had found high levels of arsenic after taking samples from fish and water being consumed by residents of the bay.
She said Newmont's failure to dump its waste compounds at sea depths considered safe had caused toxins to enter plankton eaten by fish and led to water in underground wells used by residents being tainted.
"The action performed by (Newmont) can be categorised as a corporate crime," environment ministry legal expert Sudarsono told reporters.
Residents of the area reported to police in August that the mine had caused problems including Minamata disease -- a neurological disorder named after a Japanese bay where there was an outbreak in the 1950s.
Earlier this month, Newmont chairman Wayne Murdi said his firm had "absolutely" committed no pollution. He said he was confident his executives -- three Indonesians, an Australian and an American -- would be cleared.
Newmont says any toxins found in the bay conformed to normal standards and compounds of waste produced by the mine were harmless.
Studies of waters near the mine, which ceased operations in August, show conflicting results. A World Health Organisation-backed report found no evidence of pollution but other government tests have shown high arsenic levels. - AFP
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