The people are waiting for legal certainty from the government to ensure miners obey the rules in their activities.
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·3 minutes read
We are troubled and alarmed by the stories of Tuhana and Ocih in this newspaper on Friday (17/11/2017). Their suffering from exposure to mercury was evident.
Every day, Tuhana, 43, can only crawl on all fours. His whole body shudders when he walks upright. His waist feels weak, his knees stiffen and his feet feel itchy, he said.
Not far from his home in Cibeber, Situmulya village, Lebak regency, Banten, there was Ocih, 63, who has suffered for nine years as his hands have never stopped shaking. Every time he sleeps, his body should be flipped over every two hours to relieve his pain.
This is all the impact of mercury. This is a metal substance that can trigger serious health problems, including in your muscles, bones, kidneys, reproductive system, digestive system, skin, cardiovascular system, lungs and even your central nervous system.
Tuhana and Ocih’s sufferings are caused by gold mining and processing activities. Tragically, neither Tuhana nor Ocih are gold miners. They are merely small-time farmers who just happen to live in a gold-mining area since 1980.
There, mercury is used to purify gold. Other than it being easily obtainable, using mercury is also cheaper than other gold-purifying methods. This drives mercury’s popularity in small-scale gold mines.
Currently, there are 850 small-scale gold mines in 197 cities and regencies in 32 provinces across the country. It can even be said that no region in Indonesia is free from the threat of mercury poisoning that can spread through the air, water and food. A survey by the Environment and Forestry Ministry in 352 small-scale gold mines found that the level of mercury contamination in the respective surrounding areas was above the threshold limit.
“If this is neglected, we will have an abnormal generation with many disabilities. This is deeply concerning,” the ministry’s director general for environmental destruction and pollution control, Karliansyah, said (Kompas, 17/11).
Apart from in gold mines, mercury exposure beyond the threshold limit are also found in Lampung Bay, Bayur Bay, Saguling Dam, Cirata Dam, Ciliwung River, and the shores of Surabaya, Bali, Papua and Sumatra.
We have gathered more than enough evidence of the dangers of mercury. Now is the time to act and free our people and environment from its threat. Vice President Jusuf Kalla said the government had banned the use of mercury although he also acknowledged that violations still occurred.
The people are waiting for legal certainty from the government to ensure miners obey the rules in their activities. Through legal certainty, people will not doubt the importance of investing in environmentally-friendly gold-purifying methods. This must be done soon before more casualties occur.