ARTICLES OF COAL MINING IN THE DISTRICT OF SOUTH

KALIMANTAN BANJARMASIN ABOUT CONDITIONS AROUND

ENVIRONMENT

Indonesia has a fairly extensive tropical forests biodiversity-third after Brazil, Zaire.
Based on data published by the Forestry Planning Agency of Indonesia in 2000 that
Indonesia's forest area is 120.3 million hectares or 3.1% of the world's forests (Suhendang,
2002). Forest functions that regulate the water system, prevent and limit floods, erosion, and
maintain soil fertility; presents the results of forest for the community in general and in
particular for the purposes of industrial development and exports that support economic
development; protecting the climate and the atmosphere to power the good influence; provide
natural beauty in general and in particular in the form of nature reserves, wildlife reserves,
hunting parks, and theme parks, as well as a laboratory for science, education and tourism;
and is one element of national development strategies (Suparmoko, 1997). Deforestation in
Indonesia is not only occur in natural forests but also has occurred in the protected forest.
protected forest has a specific function mainly related to the availability of water. Water is the
source of life that is very important for the sustainability of life for all living creatures.
Important energy source for the survival of humans on the earth, because it is a need
in everyday life. Energy sources that exist on earth, namely, such as coal, gold, minerals, tin,
bauxite, iron, and other energy sources. Referring to the industrial world batubar is a mineral
that is required by an industry to fuel machine used for the production process as well as fuel
for trains. Mine material is obtained by digging into the bowels of the earth because of the
location of the raw material coal is the soil layers in which the process that occurs over
thousands of years. Coal mining pose a huge impact on the surrounding environment. One of
them mining in the district of Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, which is managed by PT
Adaro Energy Tbk. Location forests are cleared to expand mining in the area in order to
facilitate the exploitation of the mine. Forests are cut down can cause great impact to the
natural ecosystems and the lives of people who live downstream region near the coal mine.
Therefore, the impact damage to the water supply and ecosystems are a major source of clean
water for the surrounding communities, in order to determine appropriate mitigation actions
and quick.
How coal mining operations can have an impact on the availability of water used by
people around the mine area as the main source of clean water, how efforts should be made to
improve the condition of the environment damaged by coal mining in the district of
Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan.

Coal
Coal is excavated material formed from plant remains trapped in the sediments and
can be used as fuel, type of sediment is trapped and undergo changes due to deposition of
organic material (burial) and diagenesa).
Coal was originally an organic material that accumulates in the marsh called peat.
Coal formation requires certain conditions and only occurs in certain eras of geological
history. Carbon Age approximately 340 million years ago (Mya) is a period of the most
productive coal formation. Coal is a fossil fuel. Understanding generally combustible
sedimentary rock, sedimentary organic, primarily the remains of plants and formed through a
process pembatubaraan. The elements consists primarily of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen.
Coal also is organic rock that has physical properties and chemical complex that can be found
in various forms.
Potential coal resources in Indonesia is very abundant, especially on the island of
Borneo and Sumatra islands. Coal is the main fuel other than diesel fuel (diesel fuel) used in
the industry. In terms of economical coal is much more efficient than the diesel with the
following comparison: solar Rp. 0.74 / kilocalories while coal Rp. 0:09 / kilocalories. In
terms of quantity, coal is the most important fossil energy reserves in Indonesia, numbers are
very abundant, reaching tens of billion tons. This amount is enough to supply the electricity
needs of up to hundreds of years.
As is known, coal mining also impacts on the surrounding environment. Mining activities
pollute the environment around mining. The pollution among others:
1. Water Pollution Coal mining directly cause water pollution, the waste from washing
the coal in terms of separating the coal with sulfur. The washing waste pollute the
river water so that the color becomes turbid river water, acid, and causing siltation of
rivers due to the deposition of the coal washing. Waste coal washing after
investigation contain substances that are dangerous to human health if the water is
consumed. The waste contains sulfur (b), mercury (Hg), slarida acid (HCN),
manganese (Mn), sulfuric acid (H2SO4), and lead (Pb). Hg and Pb is a heavy metal
that can cause skin diseases in humans such as skin cancer (Arsjad, 2000).
2. Soil Pollution Not only contaminated water, soil also suffered pollution caused by
coal mining, namely the presence of large holes are unlikely resealable that causes
puddles with a very high acid content. The puddles of water mengadung chemicals
such as Fe, Mn, SO4, Hg and Pb. Fe and Mn in large amounts is toxic to plants
resulting plants can not thrive. SO4 effect on soil fertility and soil pH, due to pollution
from the land above the existing plants will die (Arsjad, 2000) .

3. Air Pollution Coal mining causes air pollution, this is caused from burning coal.
Produce nitrogen oxides that looks brown and also as pollutants that form acid rain
(acid rain) and ground level ozone, which is another type of pollution that can make
the air dirty.
Besides dust result of removal of coal is also very harmful to health, which
can cause respiratory tract infections (ARI), and in the long term if the air continues to
be inhaled will cause cancer, and the possibility of birth defects (Arsjad, 2000)
Impact of Environmental Damage Due to Coal Mining
Coal mining activities conducted area of Banjarmasin, Est kalimantan not only has a
direct impact on the surrounding environment in the form of pollution. Forest destruction
from mining activities also affect the hydrological cycle and the life of the ecosystem in the
region. In addition, these activities also have an impact on the lives of people living
downstream section. Deforested land for coal mining activities have an influence on the
function and availability of groundwater has an important role in the availability of clean
water to the community. The forest has a function as a catcher ground so that the surface
layer of soil can absorb the water does not run or berpindah.Tingginya ability to absorption of
water by the soil surface are located in forest areas, the rain water that fell there not entirely
for water runoff (run off). Most seep into the ground, only a few are into flowing water. Run
off or limpasam water is water that is not able to be absorbed by the soil surface. This water
will come down to a lower area. If water runoff exceeds the carrying capacity of the river can
cause flooding. Most of the rain that fell in the forest area would be absorbed by the soil
(infiltration) and stored in the aquifer. Furthermore, the water stored in the aquifer will flow
through cracks or pores which eventually collected soil or groundwater that flows into public
use as water wells. Besides through wells, ground water can also be out as springs. The
spring water flowing through the river that is the forest region downstream (Suhendang,
2002).
Efforts Due to Coal Mining Activities
Efforts should be made to tackle land / forest that has been damaged by coal mining, among
which:
Replant harvested land with vegetation that can restore the ecosystem rapidly.
Make terracing on degraded land to prevent erosion is greater.
Growing plants that can store more soil water.
Using the vacant land as plantations thus have a double function.