Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan

Activists warned authorities in North Sumatra about the possibility of environmental damage following a plan to extract sand from the province's eastern coastal areas to Malaysia and Singapore, saying it could hasten coastal erosion and consequent flooding on the mainland.

Rinto, chief of the environmental division of the Medan Legal Aid Institution (LBH Medan), said he had submitted his institution's protest on the provincial administration's plan to extract sand and export it to the two neighboring countries because it would harm the environment and would not benefit local people.

"But, so far, no positive response to the protest has been made, while the provincial administration has even granted licenses to 10 private companies to quarry sand along the eastern coastal areas, to be exported to the two countries," he said here recently.

Rinto contended that the planned sand extraction would certainly accelerate coastal erosion on the mainland and cause flooding in coastal areas.

"Many towns and villages, and millions of hectares of agricultural land and fish ponds along the vast coastal areas ranging from Langkat in the north to Labuhan Batu in the south will be under threat should the planned sand extraction go ahead," he said.

According to The Jakarta Post's information based on enquiries in the field, the provincial authorities have granted concessions to ten private companies to extract sand from the coastal areas.

The ten companies are: PT Fendi Murni, PT Nusambada Prata, PT Mitra Sinar Langkat, PT Obor, PT Cipta Bhakti Kesuma, PT Antartik Supratanik, PT Reka Karya, PT Gora Gahana, PT Panca Abadi Mitra and PT Dian Mitra.

Jasnis Sulung, an environmental activist in Tandjung Balai, Asahan Regency, lambasted the local government's policy, saying it would produce problems rather than financial benefits for local people.

"The policy will bring financial benefits to a small group of businessmen who have secured licenses for sand extraction while a majority of local people will gain nothing but the negative impacts such as flooding and environmental damage," he said.

He added that despite the plan, the smuggling of sand from Labuhan Batu and Asahan Regencies had been prevalent and it would damage the environment unless it were controlled.

"A major part of the town of Tanjungbalai has been inundated for more than five months annually since illegal sand extraction became prevalent along the coastal areas in Asahan Regency," he said.

Jasnis said hundreds of tons of sand were smuggled each week to Singapore and Johar in Malaysia at a price of S$1 per cubic meter.

Nailul Amali, a councillor of the North Sumatra provincial legislative council, hailed the provincial government's policy but said it should not damage the environment.