Masri, a member of the Dayak Basap Indigenous Community, was leisurely sipping a cup of steaming boiled herbal roots one afternoon in Tebangan Lembak Village, Bengalon, East Kalimantan. The scorching heat did not deter him from maintaining the tradition, especially since his wife, Panding, had prepared the drink for him.
The elderly man believes that regularly drinking the herbal brew helps keep his body strong and prevents fatigue. At 113 years old, he remains relatively healthy, with his hearing being the only significant decline.
Masri is not alone. Most residents in the area commonly use tree roots as traditional remedies for fever, flu, and shortness of breath.
Today, however, those medicinal roots have become increasingly difficult to find around their homes. The area is now surrounded by mining operations.
Masri said residents have to venture deep into the forest to find the roots of certain tree species.
“We are already surrounded by companies,” he said on 19 February.
That afternoon, we saw coal mining trucks coming and going, sending dust into the air along the roads. The heavy vehicles were more frequently seen than local residents, even though subdistrict data recorded a population of 256 people.
An analysis by the Auriga Nusantara Foundation found several mining companies operating in Tebangan Lembak, including PT Rahmat Family Group, PT Perkasa Inakakerta, PT Kobexindo Limestone, PT Bengalon Limestone, PT Tawabu Mineral Resource (TMR), PT Damanka Prima, PT Kaltim Prima Coal (KPC), PT Selaju Nusantara Bersama, and, most recently, PT Berkah Usaha Muamalah Nusantara (BUMNU).
Mining activities have exploited 14,187.74 hectares of land out of Tebangan Lembak Village’s total area of 37,000 hectares.
A map from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) shows that Panding and Masri’s house overlaps with BUMNU’s concession, a company owned by the Islamic organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU). The couple was unaware of this because they had never been notified or consulted about it.
BUMNU obtained a Special Mining Business License (IUPK) in 2024 covering approximately 26,000 hectares. The concession is spread across seven blocks, one of which is located in Tebangan Lembak, covering 1,811.98 hectares.
The company has not yet begun mining operations, but Aksi Ekologi & Emansipasi Rakyat (AEER) has recorded at least 14 mining pits in the area. MapBiomas data also shows mining pits covering 592 hectares.
From the air, Tebangan Lembak looks like a head covered in hair—but with large patches of baldness.
These mining pits did not appear overnight. Before BUMNU obtained the concession, the area was part of KPC’s concession.
According to several residents, KPC began acquiring land in Tebangan Lembak around mid-2008. The impacts have been felt by residents for roughly the past 15 years.
Contaminated Water
The loss of forest cover is not the only problem. Rivers have become polluted and are no longer suitable for consumption. Even after boiling the water, residents say it tastes strange. The problem becomes worse after rainfall, when the river water changes color and becomes thick.
“That’s why we can’t drink it anymore. We have to buy refill drinking water,” Masri said.
A study by the Ministry of Environment found that the Bengalon watershed, where BUMNU’s concession is located, has a sensitive and vulnerable ecoregion. The area is dominated by structural hills and fluvial plains, which are difficult to restore once forest cover is cleared. Restoring a watershed with such a vulnerable ecoregion can take more than 100 years.
Residents now depend on water distributed through KPC’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) program, although supplies are limited. On average, each household has one water tank filled once or twice a day. The water must be sufficient for all their daily needs.
BPS data also recorded that since 2021, all residents of Tebangan Lembak Village have relied on refill drinking water, despite the Bengalon watershed running through the area.
Ironically, this coal-surrounded village does not have access to electricity. Residents have to contribute Rp50,000 per month to purchase fuel for a generator so that they can have electricity at night. This places an additional burden on Masri and Panding.
“He [Masri] doesn’t have a job anymore. He can’t work. He’s already old. Where are we supposed to get the money? Everything is so expensive. We have to pay for water too.”
Electricity from the generator is only available during certain hours, from 6 p.m. to midnight.
Erasing Indigenous Communities
Most residents of Tebangan Lembak are members of the Dayak Basap Indigenous Community. They practice shifting cultivation. Typically, the Dayak Basap cultivate one plot of land for about six months before moving to a new plot when soil fertility declines. The practice allows nature to recover naturally.
Among the crops they grow is upland rice. Unlike lowland rice, upland rice has taller stalks and grows in mountainous or hilly areas.
Its cultivation requires relatively little maintenance. Upland rice does not require artificial irrigation or chemical fertilizers; rainfall provides sufficient water.
However, rainfall has become increasingly unpredictable. Agricultural land is also shrinking as large areas are converted into coal mines and oil palm plantations. Crop failures have consequently become unavoidable.
For the past five years, residents have not harvested upland rice. They have also been unable to hold the traditional Nembang Tahun ceremony, a ritual held to celebrate a successful harvest.
“If the harvest fails, we can’t hold the ritual. We need new rice for that,” said Joni, the son of the Dayak Basap traditional leader.
In 2018, upland rice was still being harvested on 703 hectares of farmland in Bengalon District. The area declined continuously in subsequent years. By 2025, BPS data no longer recorded upland rice harvests.
The Dayak Basap Indigenous Community had feared this would happen for more than a decade, since KPC entered Tebangan Lembak. They opposed the clearing of forests for mining.
However, the mining operation had obtained permits from the central government and was therefore able to continue operating. Meanwhile, the community’s opposition at the village government level was ignored.
Rather than halting mining activities, the government instead replaced KPC in part of the area with BUMNU. Residents were puzzled as to why the religious organization had agreed to take over KPC’s former concession.
The entry of BUMNU also involved minimal participation from the Indigenous community. Residents were neither asked for their views nor requested to sign any form of consent.
They learned about PBNU’s involvement informally from friends, rather than through formal outreach by the company.
Joni is worried that BUMNU will bring impacts similar to—or even worse than—those caused by KPC’s mining activities. He is particularly concerned that the company failed to involve Indigenous communities from the outset.
BUMNU held a public consultation on the preparation of an Environmental Impact Assessment (AMDAL) at the Bengalon District Office on 13 November 2025.
The invitation used the official letterhead of the district government, under Letter No. B-500.10.2.3/1798/KEC.BGL-PU. However, the letter itself was issued by the company.
“The district government only facilitated [the meeting],” said Bahrul, a staff member at the Bengalon District Office, on 20 February 2026.
The attached invitation list contained 33 parties. These included the Head of the East Kalimantan Environmental Agency, the Head of the East Kutai Environmental Agency, the Kaubun Subdistrict Head, the Bengalon Military District Commander, the Bengalon Police Chief, the Bengalon Naval Post Commander, and the Head of the Bengalon Production Forest Management Unit (KPHP).
Village heads from five affected villages in Bengalon District—Keraitan, Sekerat, Tebangan Lembak, Tepian Langsat, and Sepaso Timur—were also invited. Another village in Kaubun District, Cipta Graha, was included, along with representatives of traditional leaders.
Yet Dayak Basap Indigenous residents themselves never received the invitation, whether from the district, village government, or company.
“We were never involved,” Joni said.
At the Tebangan Lembak Village Office, a sheet of paper was posted announcing BUMNU’s request for written suggestions, opinions, and responses from the community as part of the AMDAL preparation process. The company provided only 10 working days, from 13 to 25 November 2025, for residents to respond.
Joni was unaware of the announcement. Even Panding and Masri, whose house is only 100 meters from the village office, did not know about it.
Not all residents visit the village office every day. The problem was that the announcement was not distributed to residents’ homes. Those who did not visit the village office therefore had no way of knowing about it.
“No one has informed the Indigenous community.”
Hariani Samal, Director of Sustainable Natural Resources Management at the Ministry of Environment, said the AMDAL process had already been submitted to the Minister of Environment, but the decision had not yet been issued.
“It has already been submitted to the leadership. The minister has not signed it yet,” she said on 2 July.
Environment Minister Jumhur Hidayat admitted that he had not yet reviewed the AMDAL documents. If any provisions were found to be inconsistent with regulations, he said the company would be advised accordingly.
“It wouldn’t necessarily be cancelled. We would tell them what needs to be corrected,” he said on 31 August 2026 in South Jakarta.
Growing Anxiety
The Indigenous community is skeptical of BUMNU’s promise to implement good mining practices, which the religious organization has frequently promoted in the media.
For residents, there is no history of mining that has not caused environmental damage. If given a choice, they would rather see their land turned into durian orchards and other fruit plantations.
They believe trees would not generate the dust and vibrations that come from coal mine blasting.
The Indigenous community also doubts BUMNU’s promise to empower local residents. Their experience so far has shown that people in Kalimantan have largely received the impacts of mining—particularly dust—without experiencing tangible improvements in their welfare.
Joni’s and other Indigenous residents’ unwillingness to easily compromise with mining operations has instead left them increasingly marginalized within the village.
According to Joni, the village government is more sympathetic to the company than to the Indigenous people who live there. Yet the conditions faced by the Indigenous community in Tebangan Lembak are already extremely difficult.
“Our protests go in one ear and out the other.”
Disaster Looms
Residents of Tebangan Lembak now spend more of their time in other villages. Changes in environmental conditions, limited access to safe drinking water, and the lack of electricity are among the reasons.
Joni is one of them. He had to build a house in Sepaso, 16 kilometers away, because his child attends school there.
Although Sepaso has electricity, it is hardly better off than Tebangan Lembak. The area has experienced several disasters of its own.
Flooding in Sepaso occurs whenever it rains and is more severe than in Tebangan Lembak because Sepaso lies at a lower elevation.
“We’re like we’re sitting in a frying pan.”
The house of Ahmad Alan, Chairman of the Dayak Basap Traditional Council, was even flooded when Mongabay visited on 20 February.
Alan said the flooding had persisted for more than a month.
Rainwater mixed with overflow from the Bengalon River, located only 20 meters behind his house. Alan had renovated the house several times, eventually raising it to one meter above ground level. Yet floodwaters continued to enter, at one point submerging the house.
The house has long served as a gathering place for the Dayak Basap Traditional Council. It is also where they make traditional clothing and handicrafts, after gradually being pushed out of Tebangan Lembak.
Another danger comes from crocodiles, which frequently approach residents’ homes. In recent years, sightings of the large reptiles entering settlements in West Sepaso have increased. Alan’s nephew was once attacked.
“He was bitten on the hand,” Alan said.
The disasters, he said, were not surprising. He believes flooding has become more frequent because the land’s ability to absorb water has declined. Trees have disappeared, replaced by coal mines and oil palm plantations.
The loss of trees in Tebangan Lembak, which lies upstream, means that water that would previously have been absorbed now flows downstream toward Sepaso.
Alan said his customary forest, which once covered tens of thousands of hectares, has now almost disappeared because it has been included in company permits. Today, the community is trying to protect the remaining approximately 5,000 hectares in Tengkero Buduk as customary forest.
To strengthen the legal position of the Dayak Basap Indigenous Community, they established the Perkumpulan Pemangku Dayak Basap under the auspices of the Sultanate of Kutai Kartanegara Ing Martadipura. The aim is to better protect their customary laws and traditions amid the expansion of mining and palm oil plantations.
The association has also been formally recognized as a legal entity through Decree of the Minister of Law of the Republic of Indonesia No. AHU-0010193.AH.01.07 of 2025.
However, they believe formal recognition alone is not enough. Traditional leaders have also emphasized the importance of a specific regional regulation (perda) that explicitly recognizes customary institutions and gives them a stronger legal position.
Without such a regulation, companies can still easily enter their territory without first having to engage with customary institutions.
The Indigenous community is currently coordinating with various parties to push for the adoption of a regional regulation and the formal recognition of customary forests, including through the local legislative council (DPRD).
“If we stop protecting what remains of our customary forest, it will all be gone.”
Was the Mining License Granted Recklessly?
Windy Pranata, Head of Advocacy and Database Division at the East Kalimantan Mining Advocacy Network (Jatam Kaltim), questioned whether the government had exercised sufficient care and diligence when granting mining concessions to companies.
“It is already clear that there are many houses there, yet they still granted the permit. Didn’t they check the site directly? Did they just work from the office?”
According to a 2025 record by the Indigenous Peoples’ Alliance of the Archipelago (AMAN), a total of 7,348,747 hectares of customary territory are under the control of industrial licensing regimes. Of this total, 756,928 hectares of customary territory overlap specifically with mining business permits.
There are 69 documented conflicts between Indigenous communities and mining projects across an area of 1,057,738 hectares.
Erwin Febrian, who assists the Dayak Basap Indigenous Community through Fraksi Rakyat Kutim, called on the state to uphold its commitment to protecting Indigenous peoples. He argued that the gradual departure of Indigenous residents from their villages should serve as a warning to the government that certain investments are displacing Indigenous communities.
“If this continues, what will disappear is not only the people, but also their language, traditional knowledge, history, culture, and Indigenous identity,” he said.
He stressed that the state has an obligation to ensure that Indigenous communities can continue to live decent lives within their customary territories. Development, he said, should strengthen the existence of Indigenous communities rather than gradually force them to leave.
Unfortunately, there is still no strong legal framework for recognizing and protecting Indigenous peoples’ rights. The Indigenous Peoples Bill has remained stalled for nearly two decades since it was first included in the national legislative program.
The Hot Potato in NU’s Hands
The fate of the Dayak Basap Indigenous Community now lies with the government that grants mining concessions and the company that decides whether to accept them—in this case, senior officials within the Central Board of Nahdlatul Ulama (PBNU).
BUMNU received its concession from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources during the administration of President Joko Widodo. At the time, the concession attracted public scrutiny, with many viewing it as a form of political reward because PBNU had declared its support for Joko Widodo (Jokowi) in the 2019 presidential election. Ma’ruf Amin also ran alongside Jokowi.
East Kalimantan Regional Regulation No. 1 of 2016 on the 2016–2036 Regional Spatial Plan (RTRW), Article 51 paragraph 8(b), stipulated that no new coal mining permits should be issued. However, this provision no longer appears in the 2023–2042 East Kalimantan RTRW.
Another change concerns mining near settlements. The 2016–2036 RTRW specifically prohibited mining activities in settlement areas unless approval was obtained and the activity provided added value to local communities through public consultation, with a minimum distance of one kilometer from the nearest settlement. The revised regulation no longer specifies a minimum distance between mining activities and settlements.
Jokowi also issued Presidential Regulation No. 76 of 2024, amending Presidential Regulation No. 70 of 2023 on Land Allocation for Investment Arrangement. The regulation provides the legal framework for enterprises owned by religious organizations to obtain Special Mining Business License Areas (WIUPK).
Mongabay contacted Tri Winarno, Director General of Mineral and Coal at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, to ask why PBNU, through BUMNU, was granted the mining concession—particularly given field findings showing that the concession overlaps with Dayak Basap settlements in Tebangan Lembak, the Tebangan Lembak Village Office, the East Kutai Housing and Settlement Area Agency, and the Orangutan Prevab area of Kutai National Park.
He did not respond to requests for comment on 26 June and 14 July. We also contacted Dwi Anggia, spokesperson for the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources. She said she would check the matter first, but did not respond to follow-up requests on 26 June, 30 June, 2, 6, and 14 July.
Within PBNU itself, divisions remain over the mining concession issue. Savic Ali, Head of Media, IT and Advocacy at PBNU, said that several kiai and officials with activist backgrounds had objected to the decision.
According to him, they adhere to the Islamic jurisprudential principle that avoiding harm should take precedence over pursuing benefits. Previously, NU had stated that environmental pollution—whether of air, water, or soil—constitutes a prohibited act if it causes dlarar (harm), and can be considered a criminal act (jinayat). This position was adopted at the 29th NU Congress in Cipasung, Tasikmalaya, in 1994.
On 23 July 2007, NU, through the National Movement for Forestry and Environmental Conservation (GNHLN), also resolved that the government and the public must take concrete action to eliminate activities that damage forests, the environment, and residential areas, as well as address social problems, for the sake of maintaining the integrity of the Republic of Indonesia.
Savic said the decision to accept the coal concession had been made by only a few individuals. According to Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources data, BUMNU President Director Yahya Cholil Staquf is also Chairman of PBNU. Its directors include Aizzudin, Head of PBNU’s Economic and Environmental Affairs; Amin Said Husni, PBNU Secretary-General; and Gudfan Arif, PBNU Treasurer.
The company’s President Commissioner is Miftachul Akhyar, Rais Aam of PBNU, while the other two commissioners are Akhmad Sa’id Asrori, a NU cleric, and Syaifullah Yusuf, also known as Gus Ipul, former PBNU Secretary-General and current Minister of Social Affairs.
Savic said he was unaware of the progress of the mining operation. Management of the mine, he said, had been left entirely to Gudfan, meaning that many PBNU officials, including members of the company’s own board of directors, were unaware of developments on the ground.
Gus Yahya himself, Savic said, acknowledged that he had not sent anyone to inspect the actual condition of the concession, including whether it overlapped with conservation areas or community land rights.
“Yes, the concession was accepted, but essentially the area had not yet been properly checked—where exactly it is, what its boundaries are, and what it borders. I think Gus Yahya didn’t know,” he said.
Regarding BUMNU’s activities, Savic suspects that Gudfan communicates more frequently with Miftachul Akhyar and Gus Ipul. This is because, during tensions between Gus Yahya and the Rais Aam, Gudfan was aligned with the Rais Aam.
Mongabay requested comments from Gus Yahya and Gudfan. Neither had responded. Gudfan said he could not respond because he was performing Umrah.
Nevertheless, Savic believes Gus Yahya does not want BUMNU to come into conflict with communities. If the concession is proven to overlap with areas legally belonging to communities or has the potential to trigger horizontal conflict, PBNU says it will reject the concession.
“Gus Yahya already made that statement right at the beginning.”
Rumadi Ahmad, Head of Public Welfare at PBNU, said Gudfan had only submitted a report on NU’s mining activities in May 2026. However, the report did not specifically address the overlap between BUMNU’s concession and residents’ settlements, particularly the territory of the Dayak Basap Indigenous Community.
“As for the overlap with the Dayak Basap Indigenous Community, many [people] still don’t know about it,” he said on 6 August 2026.
Rumadi also said that many PBNU officials, including Yahya, did not understand the technical aspects and regulations governing mining and therefore were unaware of potential violations.
At the East Kalimantan branch of Nahdlatul Ulama (PWNU Kaltim), opposition to the concession is relatively strong. Asman Azis, Head of the Institute for Human Resources Studies and Development (Lakpesdam) of PWNU East Kalimantan, said local NU members have directly experienced the impacts of mining, prompting calls for PBNU to reconsider accepting the concession.
Uce Prasetyo, Head of the NU Economic Institute (LPNU) in East Kutai, supports PBNU’s management of the coal mine as a means of achieving organizational economic independence.
He said the move would also prevent the organization from receiving syubhat income—money from sources whose legitimacy is unclear.
The former East Kutai legislative council member acknowledged that mining could cause flooding and environmental damage, as has occurred in Sangatta and surrounding areas. In the past, he said, major flooding in Sangatta occurred once every ten years. Now, it happens every five years.
“Almost step by step, everything gets paralyzed [by flooding],” he said.
However, he argued that without mining, East Kutai would also lose significant regional revenue.
Gudfan, BUMNU’s director, claimed that PBNU accepted the mining concession because it hoped to use the proceeds for the benefit of the Muslim community (umat). Regarding the overlap issue, BUMNU has conducted studies concerning land use, particularly its compliance with spatial planning, and has obtained Approval for Spatial Utilization Activity Conformity (PKKPR) in accordance with East Kalimantan’s RTRW.
“This of course has taken many aspects into consideration so that exploration and exploitation activities can subsequently be carried out in accordance with applicable regulations,” he said in a letter dated 5 August 2026.
He said the company respected calls from members of the public urging BUMNU to return the concession to the government. However, he said the company would follow government policy.
“BUMNU pays close attention to long-term interests across all aspects—economic, social, and environmental—and, of course, to ensuring benefits for the community,” he claimed.
Amid the controversy, Savic said the issue would be discussed again at the 35th NU Congress in August 2026. Many young NU members, he said, are increasingly aware of the issue and oppose the mining concession. However, he could not predict the outcome of the Congress.
He said NU is a large organization with thousands of members. For decades, the organization had survived without having to mine coal. Savic believes there are many ways for the organization to sustain itself, including through gotong royong, or collective mutual assistance.
“So there should actually be no reason for NU to enter businesses that, religiously speaking, are syubhat—that is, questionable, or that cause harm or mafsadah.”
Questioning the Government’s Commitment
Various groups are urging the government to reconsider the expansion of coal concessions to religious organizations. The policy is particularly contradictory to the government’s commitment to achieving net-zero emissions (NZE), as reflected in Indonesia’s ratification of the Paris Agreement in 2015.
“This represents a fundamental contradiction that continues to recur between the government’s commitment to reducing emissions and the direction of mining policy,” Windy said.
Research by the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) and Publish What You Pay (PWYP) has shown that the energy sector is the largest contributor to emissions, both globally and nationally. In Indonesia, the sector accounts for approximately 43% of total national emissions, with coal as its main contributor.
Indonesia was the world’s third-largest coal producer in 2023. According to AEER records, coal production in East Kalimantan continued to rise from 2018, reaching 368 million tonnes in 2024. Total national coal production reached 836 million tonnes in 2024 and 817.48 million tonnes in 2025.
With religious organizations now being granted mining concessions, coal production is expected to continue increasing, along with its associated emissions.
Jatam East Kalimantan argues that the policy demonstrates that coal remains a foundation of Indonesia’s development model. Rather than issuing new permits, Windy said, the government should gradually reduce mining activities and audit existing mining permits.
He argued that granting mining concessions to religious organizations does not constitute democratization of natural resource management. Instead, the policy merely expands the number of actors involved in the extractive industry without addressing the longstanding governance problems in the mining sector.
“This repeats the practice of selling off mining concessions during the era of regional autonomy in East Kalimantan, when concessions were previously also granted to and managed by cooperatives and even religious groups,” he said.
Jatam East Kalimantan also believes the government should prioritize resolving agrarian conflicts, cases of criminalization, and environmental restoration rather than issuing new permits. Based on Jatam’s advocacy experience, policies such as this risk pitting communities defending their living spaces against organizations that have obtained mining permits.
In addition to calling for a review of the mining policy for religious organizations, Jatam East Kalimantan is pushing for revisions to the Mineral and Coal Mining Law (Minerba Law) because it contains problematic provisions. The law, it argues, reinforces a natural resource exploitation-oriented approach rather than strengthening environmental protection and community rights.
The law provides for priority allocation of Mining Business License Areas (WIUP) to certain business entities, but without sufficiently strengthening oversight mechanisms, permit evaluations, or environmental restoration.
This is inconsistent with the environmental protection principles established under Law No. 32 of 2009 on Environmental Protection and Management, which emphasizes precaution, sustainability, and the prevention of environmental damage.
“As a result, the problems at the root of these conflicts are likely to continue expanding.”
Source: Mongabay