BlueBayDivers
Registered
Dear Friends, I would like to inform you about a disastrous development that we are currently facing. A Chinese company is building an iron mine on Bangka, with the intention of mining both on the land, and just off the coast of (the Western side of) Bangka Island. Half of Bangka will turn into an open pit mining site, and the underwater mining activities will stir up so much sediment, sand, and dirt that the reefs surrounding Bangka and neighbouring Islands will all die. Even the reefs within the Bunaken National Park are not safe. Bunaken is one of the 10 best diving sites in the world. Bangka island measures 4800 hectares and is categorized as a small island under Indonesian law. According to the Indonesian law it is illegal to mine anything on small Islands, so this should not be happening. Bangka also hosts three fishing villages (Lihunu, Kahuku and Libas) and four diving resorts. The provincial development plan maps it as a marine tourism development zone. However corruption is still a part of life here and the mining corporation bought" some of the government people to get some of "the licenses" they need. The resorts in the area are working together with the villagers and a local environmental organisation to try and stop this illegal activity. They have already sent a letter to the local House of Representatives to get a hearing, but so far nothing seems to happen. As the mining company is moving fast (they want to start operating before the end of this year) we need to act quickly to have a chance to stop them. So my friends, you can also be involved AT LEAST JUST BY SIGNING THE PETITION ON THIS WEBSITE: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/safe-bangka-stop-mining/ You don't have to register anything. You just have to fill the simple form, and add your comment/reason you vote for Bangka Island. We need 10.000 signature, guys! Your help is really important for us all. Please, tell your friends and familiy to sign the petition. More information about this campaign can be obtain in this facebook group: Log In | Facebook Thank you!