How to threaten the electric cars race of the marine paradise

It seems that the stark images, taken from a drone by environmental activists and their participation with the BBC, show how nickel mining stripped forests and polluted water in one of the most maritime habitats on the ground.

The Raja Ampat Archipelago – a group of small islands in the southern West Baba Province in Indonesia – was named after “Amazon of the Seas”.

But the mining for nickel – which is composed of electric vehicle batteries and stainless steel – has risen there in recent years, according to the organization Watch a global.

In a move welcomed by activists, the Indonesian government canceled this week’s permits of four of the five mining companies operating in the region.

in A statement published on the InternetThe Ministry of Environment in Indonesia said: “The biological diversity in Raja Ambat is a world heritage that must be protected.

“We pay great attention to mining activities that occur in the region.”

But photographs – took them The global witness as part of the investigation It appears to show the environmental damage that has already occurred.

Air photos show the loss of forests and sediments in water that are home to coral reefs.

Global Witness BBC told mining, through multiple small islands in the archipelago, increased by 500 hectares – equivalent to about 700 football fields – between 2020 and 2024.

Some conservative specialists, Including GreenpeceThey are concerned that the government’s decision can be reflected through legal procedures by mining companies.

A single company operating on the island of Gag, which has special rich deposits for nickel, has been allowed to continue its operations. The government said it would ask “to restore the environmental effects that occur” there.

Dr. Mark Erdman, the world of preserving coral reefs, told Dr. Mark Ardman BBC News that he was “very happy and happy” regarding the government’s decision to cancel mining permits.

“This is the Center for Global Biological Diversity,” BBC News told BBC News.

Dr. Ardman worked in Raja Ampat for more than two decades, and he is one of the founders of the project to redirect the shark called there Reshark. He added: “The voice of anger was from the Indonesian people, which made the government care.”

But this ecological controversy is an example of how the demand for minerals needed to operate battery technology – for electric cars and other carbon low energy sources – can harm the environment.

Indonesia now represents more than half of the production of the Nickel Mine in the world, according to Last year’s report By the Institute of Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.

Although the beauty and biological diversity in Raja Ampat drew attention to the mining activity there, mining has been linked to environmental damage in another place as well.

Study 2024 conducted by Forest Wuchudus Indonesia It was found a link between the loss of forests associated with mining activity, increased local floods and landslides.

Increased demand for what is called critical minerals is the formation of economic decisions around the world. The driving force for President Trump’s last executive order was to start mining mineral nodules from the depths of the seas in international waters. that it A step that China called illegal.

Dr. Ardman indicated that the budget for economic growth with environmental protection was a special dilemma for Indonesia. “It contains a lot of nickel – one way or another, some of which will come out of the ground,” he said.

Dr. Michaella Go Ying Lu was led by Kent University A study in 2024 The effect of mining on local communities in Sulawesi, the large Indonesian island that has most of the nickel deposits in the country.

This was concluded that mining activity reduced poverty slightly, but there was a “great exacerbation of environmental well -being”, including increased water pollution and local air.

“Indonesia is putting itself worldwide in the Nickel Market,” said Dr. Luke BBC News. “But it is important not to forget what is happening locally.”

“They say that the nickel is a solution to the climate crisis. But it causes the removal of forests and the destruction of agricultural lands,” Imam Shoufwan, an environmental activist from an organization called Gatem, based in Jakarta, told BBC News.

He also pointed to the BBC that the low coastal areas, where there are some nickel deposits, are some of the most vulnerable places of climate change, including sea level rise.

Dr. Ardman commented: “The nickel dilemma is horrific.

“Mining will always be effective on the environment, and we all tend to believe that electrification is a good idea. But what is the acceptable damage that we are ready to see?”

BBC called the Indonesian government to comment, but she did not receive a response.