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Info Sheet #ClimateJustice

Stop Producing Dirty Coal Energy, Time for Renewable Energy

I

ndonesia is the biggest coal exporter country in the world. Consequently, the forests and living space for the people of Indonesia extensively damaged by coal mining, such as in Borneo, Sumatera, and Papua.

Air pollution in mining and coal transportation lines

Mining societies along transportation lines suffer due to dust from transportation activities of coal mining. Many settlements and schools located along the coal transportation lines, such as in East Barito, Tanah Bumbu, South Kalimantan. The students in 14 (fourteen) school suffered because the dust contamination from coal port in Cirebon. School children along the coal transportation lines felt the worst impact of dust pollution from coal transportation.

Threats to the Rivers

Water pollution from the mining pits was not reclaimed. Based on research of WALHI (2015), a very high content of heavy metals in the coal mine pit and the water which flowing from the coal mine area.

Mahakam River in East Kalimantan and the Barito River in West and Central Kalimantan seriously polluted due to coal mining activities

in the surrounding area and the coal transportation activities.

Dayak indigenous peoples in Maruwai, Central Kalimantan, complained their serious turbid condition of river severe since the coal mining operated in their area.

Threats to food and living space of citizens

Productive agricultural areas damaged by coal mining activity occurs in the vicinity. In the land issue, be sides in seizing land and forests and indigenous peoples living space, a coal mining company also threatening many residents homesteader land (transmigration area). Which occurred in Kutai, North Bengkulu. These areas are productive agricultural land that provides food for local people.

Deaths in the mining pits

After mining activities, mine pits were not being close with reclamation. As a consequence, fatalities fell due to children falling into the pit of the mine. As happened in the city of Samarinda, East Kalimantan, there were 12 children have died because drowning in off-reclamation mining pits.

Fired workers and unemployment

Commitment and Contradiction

In addition to exposure of dust mining, many coal mining workers fired when the demand for coal decreased. Today, China as an export destination for Indonesian coal began reducing their coal imports.

The consequence is there are thousands of workers laid off coal mines in Kalimantan. Coal was susceptible sector to do layoffs for the workers.

In INDCs document was submitted to the UNFCCC, after 2020, the Government of Indonesia considers the indication emissions reduction target to 29% in 2030. Unfortunately, this emission reduction contribution makes people pessimistic if they see that the national development plan from 2015 to 2019, especially in the energy sector. Rather than to answer the energy crisis, the government will build 35,000 megawatts, which is still largely rely on coal and coal power.

Deadly Coal Electrical Power Plant

A total of 6,500 people in Indonesia die prematurely due to air pollution of coal electrical power plant every year. This is because of the pollen burning of coal in power plant. Coal power plant technology in Indonesia was older than modern countries, such as Japan. Control coal pollutants were harmful for health (SOx, NOx and fine particles causing respiratory, and heart disease) up to 20 times worse than Japan. That’s why, civilians around the coal power plant such as Cirebon, Paiton, Jepara complained about the dust come from coal.

Coal electrical power plants were mostly located in coastal areas. Disembarking of coal in the coal power plant area was causing the damage of coastal ecosystems. So, the catch of fish by the fishermen decreased in Cirebon and Jepara.

It’s been counterproductive between emission reduction targets with the development model, which still prioritize the use of dirty energy and deforestation of forest areas. How could the target of reducing carbon emissions 29% by 2030 being achieved, if the carbon produced from the combustion of coal, have increased two times from 201 million tCO2 in 2015 to 383 million tCO2 in 2024. Not to mention carbon emissions from oil and gas burnt, both from power plants and motor vehicles. It is unclear of the government’s efforts in improving the public transportation model that was not greedy for fossil energy. While forests are enabled to absorb the emissions, it more damaged because of coal digging in order to fulfill the needs of the power plant about 250 million tons/ year.

The Indonesian Government was not aware that coal combustion that produces carbon emissions was so large, but the governments still continues to perpetuate dependence on dirty energy and are reluctant to switch to renewable energy. This can be seen from the national development planning policy in RPJMN 2015-2019.

Doc. Coal electrical power plants in Jepara

Forcefulness to release the land of people occurs at the site of the power plant which the reason is electrical supply for the public interest. In fact, most of the power projects being built today utterly owned privately for business interests. Not for the public interest of electricity objectives. The main aim is not to meet the electricity residents. The proof, large electricity projects are generally built in Java, which has a surplus of 31% than in areas outside Java were less of electricity.

Issues toward Funding is a concern to environmental organizations in Indonesia who have been advocating an end to coal, among other Japanese government policies to develop the coal industry and the development of projects of steam power plants in Indonesia through companies from Japan and including financial institutions of Japan. Financial institutions and companies from Japan currently being intensively expand and invest their shares in the field of coal and power plant in Indonesia. Eg Mitsubishi UFJ Financial, one of the largest financial institutions in Indonesia after Citigroup (US) was financing the coal industry in Indonesia. In the last five years, these institutions finance 53.337 million US dollars in Indonesia’s coal industry.

So that, it can be said that Japan was participated in conducting environmental pollution in Indonesia and also contribute significantly to generating GHGs emissions from the coal sector that have an impact on climate change and threatened for all the creatures of the earth.

As power country that have the financial and technological capabilities, and had a greater historical responsibility in generating greenhouse gases, Japan should show leadership in reducing fossil energy financing and encouraging the development of renewable energy.

Momentum & Opportunities

COP 21 in Paris should be a momentum for the parties, especially the government, both the Indonesian government and the governments who continues to fund the dirty energy that produces emissions that are very large to build political commitment more strongly for an end to dirty energy and immediately switch to renewable energy, including transfer of technology as the historical responsibility of countries that have been so great exploit fossil energy in many countries, including in Indonesia.

If the Indonesian government is serious about achieving the emission reduction target of 26% in 2020 and indication target reducing emission 29% in 2030 by Business as Usual scenario, they should leave the coal as an energy source immediately. Indonesia has a lot of renewable energy sources, such as water, wind, and solar with the principle of fair, sustainable, and are owned by the people and for the fulfillment of people’s interests. With natural renewable energy, the negative impact of coal usage in the mining area and the location of the power plant can be avoided.

Stop Dirty Energy!! No Fossil Fuel!! No Funding for Dirty Energy!!

Doc. WALHI : Coal consumption in Indonesia potrait

Contact Person: Pius Ginting, Head of Reseach National Executive of WALHI Mobile Phone: +62 81932925700 Email: pius.walhi@gmail.com skype:pius.ginting