Ensuring Ecological Security through Illegal Mining Management
By: Gendhis Sathiti
Behind the slogan of sustainability, illegal mining (PETI) has long been an open wound in the Indonesian landscape: robbing state revenues, destroying forests, and triggering horizontal conflicts. In recent weeks, the growing collaboration between institutions—from the Regional Police to the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK)—demonstrates the government’s shift from a “firefighting” approach to a multi-layered governance strategy based on prevention, legalization, and law enforcement. This approach deserves appreciation as an effort to reconcile ecological interests, the local economy, and state sovereignty over natural resources.
Concrete steps were seen in North Maluku when Regional Representative Council (DPD) member Hidayatullah Sjah held a dialogue with Regional Police Chief Inspector General Waris Agono. Chief Waris explained that the control of illegal mining in South Halmahera is focused on legalization through the People’s Mining Permit (IPR) and People’s Mining Area (WPR) schemes. He called this model a long-term solution because it opens up state revenue channels, enables environmentally friendly oversight, and breaks the chain of rent-seeking. This approach goes beyond simply dismantling illegal mining, but also positions the state as a protector of the livelihoods of small communities—who have historically depended on ore mining—without normalizing forest destruction.
In Jakarta, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) convened the Ministry of Forestry, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, and other institutions to discuss improving national governance. KPK Chairman Setyo Budianto presented the results of a study on the chaotic licensing process, overlapping land claims, and low financial compliance among business actors; these findings are now a shared agenda. Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni considers the integration of IPPKH data in forest areas key to closing the loopholes for permit manipulation. Meanwhile, Director General of Mineral and Coal, Tri Winarno, emphasized the reduction of mining business permits from 12,500 to 4,250 with “clear and clean” status, emphasizing that the digital platforms MODI, MOMI, e-PNBP, and SIMBARA enable real-time, big data-based monitoring instead of relying solely on physical patrols.
The synergy is complemented by the role of the Investment Coordinating Board. BKPM Secretary Heldy Satrya Putera outlined the KPK’s recommendations: validation of all permits, facilitation of investors experiencing difficulties, expedited processing, and strict oversight, including permit revocation for violations. He emphasized central-regional coordination to eliminate the “grey zones” often exploited by illegal mining (PETI)—especially after licensing authority was centralized through the Job Creation Law.
Despite increasingly visible breakthroughs, observers warn that challenges remain. CELIOS Executive Director Bhima Yudhistira views PETI as a structural problem resulting from weak coordination and neglect. In many regions, authority has been transferred to the central government but oversight capacity is not commensurate, resulting in the emergence of illegal mining. Perhapi Chairman Sudirman Widhy added that field reports often end up in the hands of certain individuals and praised the Criminal Investigation Agency’s operation in Samboja—near the Indonesian capital—as evidence of the state’s impartiality.
From an environmental ethics perspective, the legalization of the People’s Mining Permit (IPR) and People’s Mining Area (WPR) reflects the principle of complicit justice: the state does not simply close illegal mines, but also opens legal access rights for small-scale miners so they can continue to earn a living without damaging the ecosystem. Communities are invited to participate legally, so that the state-citizen relationship rests on protection, not coercion.
On the other hand, the digitization of governance—through the MODI, MOMI, e-PNBP, and SIMBARA platforms—addresses the demands of procedural justice. Production data, mine coordinates, and financial obligations are recorded transparently and accountably, eliminating the dark space of rent-seeking practices. Citizens, local governments, and the central government can all work together to monitor, enforce the law, and restore public trust in natural resource management.
If this legal-transformational approach is accompanied by education on good mining practices, green economy-based rehabilitation, and a data dashboard that is also consumed by village communities, then enforcement and prevention will synergize. The end result will not only be a restored landscape, but also local economic resilience—because legal mines are required to revegetate the land, set aside reclamation funds, and foster sustainable, hereditary businesses.
Imagine a few years down the road: licensed artisanal mines routinely revegetate, state revenues increase, and miners’ children return to school because their parents are legally employed and earning decent wages. At that point, the government’s strategy will not only reduce structural poverty but also restore our ecological morality as a nation—affirming that human well-being and environmental sustainability can go hand in hand.
