Coal’s toxic effect on South Kalimantan “Something that sticks in my memory is the horrendous damage to the environment and landscape in Asam-asam, in South Kalimantan, in the Indonesian part of the island of Borneo. Coal mining has been expanding extremely rapidly there, and in 2011 the region produced one-third of Indonesia’s coal. As coal production has increased, so have the negative impacts on the province’s people and environment,” writes Arif Fiyanto from Greenpeace Southeast Asia. Suggested Tweet: The shocking story of toxic pollution from #coal mines in South Kalimantan #Indonesia http://bit.ly/1yhrxem @GreenpeaceSEA The Queensland Government’s Great Barrier Reef give-away“In the last few weeks Queensland has offered Indian coal mining giant Adani a subsidy for its mine-to-port rail line with yet-to-be-raised taxpayer funds, thumbed its nose at international concern over mega-port development and told miners they no longer need licences to use gigalitres of groundwater,” writes Felicity Wishart from the Australian Marine Conservation Society in the Northern Star. Suggested Tweet: Things worse than Obama thought for the Great Barrier #Reef writes Felicity Wishart from @AustMarConsSoc http://bit.ly/11QANNp Chile’s Punta Alcalde coal plant postponed“Last month [communities opposing the proposed Punta Alcalde coal plant] were rewarded when an executive from Endesa’s parent company, Enel, announced that the plant would be suspended due to a lack of demand for the electricity. This lack of demand results from the community’s successful defeat of two controversial mining projects in the area: Pascua Lama and El Morro. As a result, there is no need for the electricity from Punta Alcalde. While this is good news for communities fighting the project, the war is far from over,” writes Aviva Imhof in EndCoal. Suggested Tweet: #Chile’s Punta Alcalde #coal plant postponed but campaign not over http://bit.ly/1vLQ4Mx @avivaimhof |