JATAM | Mining Advocacy Network

“Indonesia’s role on the global environmental stage has undoubtedly drawn much praise and we’re enjoying a golden moment, but the State Ministry for the Environment has no strength at all at the domestic level,” said House of Representatives member Tjatur Sapto Edi.

 



The Environmental Protection and Management Law was passed last month to replace the 1997 Environmental Management Law, which many considered toothless. Environmentalists have praised the new law because it lays out clear sanctions for violators. 

But Tjatur said the state ministry should push for more funds, not only with the president, but also with the Ministry of Finance and the State Ministry for National Development Planning. 



 

“The new law has given the [Environment] Ministry lots of authority, but it won’t last without sufficient funding,” Tjatur said. “For example, the Ministry of Transportation received about Rp 600 to 700 billion in funding just for a new training center, yet the [Environment] Ministry’s [budget] is under Rp 500 billion [$53.5 million], and that’s meant to cover all regions.” 

Setyo Mursidik, a University of Indonesia environmental expert, said it has been difficult for the Environment Ministry to act because it is underfunded and has an ill-defined jurisdiction. 



 

“For example, if we’re talking about lakes, they are under the jurisdiction of the Public Works Ministry, but when it comes to polluted lakes, the [Environment] Ministry is the one responsible for fixing the problem. How can they do that job if there’s no money?” 

Tjatur added that the ministry should send a message by prosecuting major violators within a year. 

“We don’t want to see any ‘ceremonial’ actions like declaring certain companies ‘non-green,’ ” he said. 



 

Siti Maimunah, national coordinator of the Mining Advocacy Network, said Indonesia’s environmental problems were partly caused by poor cooperation between different sectors. 

“We know that the [environmental] law is strong, but we still want to see if the ministry is up to the test, because we haven’t yet seen any action under this new law,” Siti said.