"The floods and landslides that tore through Indonesia's fragile Batang Toru ecosystem in November 2024 killing up to 11% of the world's Tapanuli orangutan population prompted widespread scrutiny of the extractive companies operating in the area at the time of the ecological catastrophe. For weeks, investigators searched for evidence that the companies may have damaged the Batang Toru and Garoga watersheds before the disaster, which washed torrents of mud and logs into villages, claiming the lives of more than 1,100 people."
"On Tuesday, the Indonesian government said it would revoke the permits of 28 companies, halting their operations in the area. This includes the permits for mining company PT Agincourt Resources, behind the Martabe goldmine, as well as the permit for PT North Sumatera Hydro Energy, the developer of a large hydropower project being built along the Batang Toru River. The other permits were largely focused on timber harvesting and oil palm plantations."
November 2024 floods and landslides devastated the Batang Toru and Garoga watersheds, washing torrents of mud and logs into villages and killing more than 1,100 people. The disaster also killed up to 11% of the world's Tapanuli orangutan population, constituting an extinction-level disturbance for the species. Investigators searched for evidence that extractive companies had damaged watersheds prior to the disaster. The government revoked permits for 28 companies, including PT Agincourt Resources and PT North Sumatera Hydro Energy, and halted operations. The environment ministry sued six firms for 4.8 trillion rupiah in alleged damages. Other revoked permits targeted timber and oil palm operations.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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