Originally published August 9 2005
American company denies polluting Indonesian Bay
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
An American company and its subsidiary denies any connection with pollution found in an Indonesian Bay.
PT Newmont Minahasa Raya and President Director Richard Ness are accused of disposal of toxic waste that polluted a bay in eastern Indonesia.
If found guilty, Ness, who has lived in Indonesia for decades, could be locked up for up to 10 years, and the firm could be fined.
Environmentalists counter that Indonesia has been too lax for too long when it comes to making companies follow the rules in the sprawling archipelago of some 17,000 islands.
"There has been no crime committed and (it) looks like we're going to end up in court to show that, and we anticipate that we will show that," Newmont's vice president for Indonesian operations, Robert Gallagher, told reporters.
The trial comes at a time when foreign investment has begun to revive in Indonesia, partly on promises by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who took power last October, to make the country an easier place to do business.
The charges against Newmont revolve around waste disposal containing mercury and arsenic in Buyat Bay, 2,200 km (1,400 miles) northeast of Jakarta, which prosecutors say polluted the waters and contaminated the food chain, causing skin disease among surrounding villagers.
Asked how he felt about the trial, Newmont's Ness said: "I guess nobody wants to be accused of committing a crime, nobody wants to be accused of hurting people, creating pollution."
The mine in North Sulawesi opened in 1996 and closed last August due to depleted reserves.
Newmont has been carrying out reclamation work since then, but the pollution charges relate to when the mine was operational.
Newmont says its disposal processes at the bay were approved by the government, and several independent studies have supported the company's claim they did not pollute the bay.
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