Is Tin Mining in Bangka Sustainable?Tin Mining in Bangka is not sustainable environmentally because 77% of Bangka's forests are in critical condition from people destroying the once tropical forest for mining for tin. Now the island is fulled with craters, open pits with acidic water. Fauna on the island are at risk, for example the tarsier monkey which is a native species are losing their homes as the forest is being destroyed. Bangkas coral reefs are also dying from offshore tin mining, up to 60% of the reefs are dead which results in Bangkas tropical fish like the napoloean fish have to swim away as their homes are being destroyed.
Tin mining is not sustainable for the economy because although Bangkas revenue for tin is $70M, tin is a non renewable resource so it will run out eventually in the future and by then Bangka island will be completely destroyed from people trying to mine out all the tin. Bangka is so dependent on tin mining so when it runs out it will leave the 40% of the islands inhabitants unemployed and over 80% of people will be affected in some way, leaving an economic crisis on the island. Ever since tin mining was introduced to Bangka 13 years ago, it has driven people away from their occupations like fishermen and farmers. People working in the agriculture industry moved because tin mining gives them on average $10 a day which is double the normal wage they would get working agriculturally. While people who were fishermen have stopped because people who have been mining for tin have destroyed the coral reefs which is where fish are and now they’re over 20km from the coast making it hard for fishermen to fish. As well as this the toursim industry is declining dramatically from the environment getting destroyed from tin mining, the beaches becoming less pleasant and the coral reefs getting destroyed, less tourists are coming to Bangka and because of this people who work in the tourism industry will lose their jobs. Furthermore tin mining is also not sustainable for Bangkas social environment. This is because tin mining is incredibly dangerous because with open pits, the walls cave in and landslides happen in a result of this which can bury workers alive. As well as divers who draw ore from the seabed which is deep and can easily collapse, therefore divers get buried under metres of sand. Therefore on average 150 people dying a year from tin mining in Bangka. The victims families are impacted negatively from the deaths emotionally and physically. Mining could have been their only source of income and if it was one of the parents who died, this will result in the rest of the family having to mine in order to survive, including children. People in Bangka have a higher chance of getting malaria or dengy because most mining holes don’t get covered up which then become breeding grounds for mosquitoes, the changes of getting Malaria in Bangka has increased to 29.3 per 1,000 people. People in Bangka also have a higher chance of getting diseases from drinking contaminated water because mining pits being fulled with acidic soil, makes the fresh water polluted, and has affected half the population in Bangka island. Overall Tin mining in Bangka is not sustainable as it has a negative effect on the natural environment, social environment and on the economy. What is being done to make Tin Mining more sustainable?
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What actions could be taken to minimize the environmental effects of mining
To improve the environmental, economic and social sustainability of tin mining in Bangka, the government could put some of the revenue from tin mining into encouraging people to work in the agriculture industry by giving them a similar wage each day as mining. By more people switching from tin mining to the agriculture industry they could start to restore their forest that is already in critical condition by planting more trees and plants. People could plant coconut trees, pineapple trees and could sell them to gain back some of the revenue that they will lose from not tin mining. This will affect people socially and economically because they will feel a sense of pride as they know they’re helping Bangkas forest and getting a similar pay to tin mining means they will be able to look after their families.
Another way Bangka could minimize the environmental impacts of mining is that the government could pass a law to not allow ships to come around Bangkas shore where almost 60% of coral reefs are destroyed already. If there are no more ships on the shore, although Bangkas revenue will drop as they won’t be able to mine for tin offshore, the shore will become cleaner, if the coral reefs start to rejuvenate, fish will come back and this will encourage more tourists to come to Bangka and it could turn into a popular tourist destination instead. Bangka could build more resorts and offer activities like parasailing and snorkeling to attract more tourists. Bangkas revenue could come from tourism instead of mining. The government could offer more jobs to tourism to the locals and give them a similar pay as tin mining.
Another way Bangka could minimize the environmental impacts of mining is that the government could pass a law to not allow ships to come around Bangkas shore where almost 60% of coral reefs are destroyed already. If there are no more ships on the shore, although Bangkas revenue will drop as they won’t be able to mine for tin offshore, the shore will become cleaner, if the coral reefs start to rejuvenate, fish will come back and this will encourage more tourists to come to Bangka and it could turn into a popular tourist destination instead. Bangka could build more resorts and offer activities like parasailing and snorkeling to attract more tourists. Bangkas revenue could come from tourism instead of mining. The government could offer more jobs to tourism to the locals and give them a similar pay as tin mining.