VOA新闻杂志2025--Some on Indonesian Islands Fear Mining Damage to Environment

Indonesia has the world's largest known supply of nickel and major supplies of valuable minerals, including cobalt and bauxite¹. However, the mining industry there is being criticized for not protecting the environment and some Indonesian island people.

The Southeast Asian country is involved in mining that produces materials important to the manufacture of stainless² steel and electric vehicle batteries, among other things.

Indonesia is aiming to expand its mining and processing industries. But the development could face opposition³ from international and local groups.

Nickel processing centers are becoming more common in parts of Indonesia. Sometimes, the plants are near the sea where many boats line up to carry ore, a mineral combination that contains nickel. Sometimes, these plants are near schools or places where local people fish or farm.

The World Resources Institute, based in Washington D.C., says from 2001 to 2020, 1.4 million hectares of trees were cut down around the world. Indonesia is estimated to have had the highest loss.

Amanda Hurowitz is a director with Mighty⁴ Earth. The environmental group is also based in Washington, D.C. Hurowitz said that, on the island of Kabaena, mining companies have cleared 3,700 hectares of forest in the last 22 years.

Fishermen who used to fish off the island have said the waters are filled with sediment⁵ from the mines. People in farming communities also say they are affected⁶. They say sugar cane⁷, sugar palms and clove⁸ trees do not grow well anymore.

Amal Susanto is a sugar palm farmer. He said: "That's the effect: The growth of the sugar palm trees will not be as good because of the influence of mining." Susanto lives in an area where permits have been approved but mining has not yet begun.

People living in the area have reported health problems. Some told the Associated Press (AP) that they suffered from itchy skin, sore throat and other difficulties.

The Indonesia-based nonprofit group Satya Bumi sent water, dust and shellfish from the area to a laboratory this year. The group said the results showed dangerous levels of nickel, lead and cadmium. These substances are linked to mining.

Kathrin Shilling is an assistant professor and biology researcher at Columbia University in New York City. She studied the lab results. Shilling told the AP, "If people on this island are using the river water as drinking water...you cannot escape basically any of the exposure to those toxic⁹ metals."

Kabaena is not the only place affected. To the north, on a larger island, Torobulu is another place where mining damage can be seen.

The mining problems continue although Indonesia's constitutional court ruled in March of this year that small islands such as Kabaena should have special protection. However, a researcher from Satya Bumi said the government is still approving mining permits.

The group Mighty Earth said 150 hectares of forest have been cleared on Kabaena since April 1. And it said over half of that was on land controlled by the mining company Tonia Mitra Sejahtera. The company and Indonesia's Ministry¹⁰ of Energy and Mineral Resources did not answer requests for comment from the AP.

Amiruddin is a 53-year-old fisherman on Kabaena Island. He said the results of the government permits for mining have affected many people.

"All residents here have felt the impact," he said.

I'm Mario Ritter, Jr.

Yusuf Wahil and Victoria Milko reported this story for the Associated Press. Mario Ritter, Jr. adapted it for VOA Learning English.

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Words in This Story

batteries -n. a device that chemically stores power and can produce electrical current

sore -adj. painful

toxic -adj. something that is poisonous

1 bauxite   

n.铝土矿

参考例句：

• Aluminum is made from bauxite.铝是从铝土矿中提炼出的。
• The United States was vulnerable to shortages of chrome,bauxite,and platinum.美国的弱点是缺少铬、矾土和铂。

2 stainless   

adj.无瑕疵的，不锈的

参考例句：

• I have a set of stainless knives and forks.我有一套不锈钢刀叉。
• Before the recent political scandal,her reputation had been stainless.在最近的政治丑闻之前，她的名声是无懈可击的。

3 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

4 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

5 sediment   

n.沉淀，沉渣，沉积(物)

参考例句：

• The sediment settled and the water was clear.杂质沉淀后，水变清了。
• Sediment begins to choke the channel's opening.沉积物开始淤塞河道口。

6 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

7 cane   

n.手杖，细长的茎，藤条；v.以杖击，以藤编制的

参考例句：

• This sugar cane is quite a sweet and juicy.这甘蔗既甜又多汁。
• English schoolmasters used to cane the boys as a punishment.英国小学老师过去常用教鞭打男学生作为惩罚。

8 clove   

n.丁香味

参考例句：

• If tired,smell a whiff of clove oil and it will wake you up.如果疲倦，闻上一点丁香油将令人清醒。
• A sweet-smell comes from roses and clove trees.丁香与玫瑰的香味扑鼻而来。

9 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

10 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。