JAKARTA — Activists and scientists have condemned a British conglomerate’s decision to resume gold exploration in Indonesia’s Batang Toru forest, saying it threatens the world’s most endangered great ape, the Tapanuli orangutan. Jardine Matheson Holdings controls the Indonesian conglomerate Astra International, whose subsidiary Agincourt Resources operates the Martabe gold mine in northern Sumatra. The mine is located in the only known habitat of the Tapanuli orangutan (Pongo tapanuliensis). Identified as its own species in 2017, fewer than 800 of the great apes remain in the wild. Location of the Martabe gold mine in North Sumatra, Indonesia. The Martabe gold mine’s operation resulted in the clearing of 100 hectares (about 250 acres) of forest from 2016 to 2020. In 2019, Jardines issued a commitment to not expand farther into Tapanuli orangutan habitat, following a campaign by U.S.-based advocacy group Mighty Earth. But in 2021, Mighty Earth detected 13 hectares (32 acres) of forest loss within the mining concession, and in 2022, another 15 hectares (37 acres). The clearing stopped recently after the company scrapped its plan to build a second waste facility for the gold mine, and changed the location of planned exploration sites. However, Agincourt recently announced it would press ahead with exploration of a new site north of the current mine, covering around 1 hectare (2.5 acres). Agincourt called the exploration “an essential stage of development to advance understanding of mineral deposits and viability of the area prior to making a decision on whether to proceed with future development.” The new…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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