Flash floods hit North Maluku, a province in the eastern part in Indonesia, for four days last July. Home to nickel-focused industrial activities of the Indonesia Weda Bay Industrial Park (IWIP), the floods swept across several villages nearby.
Heavy rains in the mining area caused the Woejerana Village and Lokulamo Village in the province to be submerged for two days. It resulted in material losses, losses of agricultural produce, raising long-term physical and psychological concerns.
Nickel industrial activities have made the region more prone to flooding, experts said. Environmental organization the Mining Advocacy Network (Jatam) recorded 127 mining business permits covering an area of over 655,000 hectares and 12 smelter points in North Maluku, which has caused widespread deforestation, which in turn leads to severe floods.
Activists have demanded for IWIP to be liable for the problem.
Chinese companies are key investors in IWIP after taking over the majority of the project’s shares from the French company Eramet in 2018. As part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), IWIP was developed through collaboration between China’s Tsingshan Group, Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt, and Eramet. They established a nickel and cobalt processing facility. Following China’s entry, there has been an increase in mining-based employment practices in the villages surrounding the mining area.
This photo story captured the immediate aftermath of the disaster and subsequent water surges that followed in August, haunting the residents of North Maluku, where the soil was once rich and the rains calm.
Residents expressed their grievances when CGSP visited as their homes were once again flooded in less than a month after the floods in July.
Nurdayanti (58), a resident of Woejerana Village, vividly recalled the moment, as the overflowing of the Kobe and Akejira Rivers flooded the her village and others nearby – Woekob, Lelilef Waibulen, and Lokulamo – threatening the safety of more than 6,500 residents.
The massive flood submerged Nurdayanti’s house, swept away her motorbike, furniture, clothing, and important family documents.
“The water wouldn’t recede, so eventually everything got flooded. What mattered to us was to get the people out. The belongings were swept away, but that’s okay. As long as the children were safe, it didn’t matter if the motorcycle was damaged or the documents were lost,” recalled Nurdayanti.
In addition to material losses, the residents of Woejerana Village also experienced trauma.
Another resident, La Ban Oraple, and his wife, have become more vigilant and tend to feel anxious when it rains. They would now be busy preparing mitigation scenarios in case of another flood.
“Four days…it rained non-stop, so we are still traumatized. If it rains at night, everyone wakes up, sits up, including myself,” La Ban Oraple said.
“My wife immediately thinks of what to put up high. What should be placed above? What should we grab and run with?”
As the Head of the Secretariat of Woejerana Village, the 54-year-old man is responsible for ensuring the safety of all 450 villagers from the threat of flash floods. Under heavy rain, he and his colleague patrolled the village, checking the overflow of the Kobe River.
The nickel industry expanded into Halmahera in the 2000s. The mining company’s permit was issued by President Soeharto at the end of his rule on January 19, 1998. There is no written record whether the contract was made with the involvement of affected residents.
Significant acceleration occurred in the 2010s, with one of the largest projects being IWIP, the industrial park, which began development in 2018 to meet the global demand for electric vehicle batteries.
Currently, IWIP employs more than 70,000 local workers from North Maluku through direct recruitment, with plans to increase as the industrial park grows. IWIP has set a target of 100,000 workers by 2027.
The industrial park hosts three main tenants: Chinese-French nickel miner Weda Bay Nickel (WBN) with a nickel processing plant of 30,000 tons capacity, Chinese nickel processor Yashi Indonesia Investment producing 300,000 tons of ferronickel annually; and Chinese nickel sulphate producer Youshan Nickel Indonesia, which will produce nickel sulfate with a capacity of 130,000 metric tons per annum. Youshan Nickel is also building a 250 MW power plant and a port with a capacity of 50,000 metric tons.
Over time, nickel exploitation and the construction of IWIP have rapidly increased the frequency and intensity of floods in the region. Despite this fact, residents feel that all relevant authorities have been moving very slowly to prevent or mitigate potential flooding. Residents hope that concrete actions are taken, such as building levee infrastructures to prevent or reduce floods.
“It’s impossible to wait until many people have died before taking action. How do we minimize the flood? One solution is for the company to play its part too,” La Ban Oraple said. “Look at the barren forest, where do you think the rainwater flows? It’s definitely into the rivers, meaning more flooding when it rains.”
There is a plan to reconstruct a levee on the Akejira River. According to La Ban Oraple, the infrastructure could be an effective solution for addressing the flooding problem comprehensively. The government, in cooperation with IWIP, is in charge. But, there is no clear timeline as to when the project will be completed.
“We joked about the aid, saying, ‘I don’t need instant noodles, sir; I need us to think,’” La Ban Oraple said. “We can eat grass and survive, but we need action to reduce the flooding.”
The flooding has significantly altered life for the local communities. Residents told CGSP that they used to farm in the lands nearby. But now, due to flooding, contaminated water, and frequent inundation of the fields, they can no longer plant anything.
Before the arrival of the nickel mines, many local people relied on traditional agriculture, plantations, and natural resources—some even doubled as fishermen. Everything was in harmony with the seasons. Agricultural and plantation lands were commonly planted with rice, nutmeg, cloves, coffee, cocoa, and pineapples.
Industrial development has led to the conversion of forests and agricultural lands for industrial purposes. Nickel processing companies in the IWIP area continue to clear land for nickel mining, resulting in the loss of the natural functions of the forest.
People’s lives become uncertain. During the rainy season, they have to be ready to evacuate at any time.
Adrian Patapata (64) and his family from Lokulamo Village, North Maluku, have been forced to evacuate whenever floods return.
Fortunately, some residents of Lokulamo Village took the initiative to set up temporary refugee tents on high ground near the village after the flash floods in July. This way, they know where to run for safety when floods return.
“When the floodwaters rise, we move immediately. There are several people in this area (setting up tents) on that mountain. Everyone will run there. If you see the tents, there are many, and that’s where everyone goes,” Adrian said when met at his home, which was still in disarray from the July floods.
Adrian described how the back of his house, including the bathroom and washing area, was swept away by the current, along with the firewood he had stored there. Despite the difficulties, he still made space beside his house to help the church store religious decorations.
After the last flood, the Weda-Lelilef road in Lokulamo Village and Kobe Village was submerged and impassable. This meant Adrian could only inspect his farm two days later, on August 15, 2024, when the floodwaters receded. Due to the closed roads, he had to take a longer route to reach his farm. Upon arrival, he found that his farm had been completely flooded.
“Yes, it’s all gone, the coconuts and cocoa are ruined too,” Adrian said.
The 64-year-old man noted that he hasn’t been able to fully enjoy the crops due to flooding since the birth of his fifth child in 2001, which was one year after nickel mining began its expansion on Halmahera Island.
“Before there was mining [activities], it wasn’t like this. Now that there’s mining, we’re hit by disasters. Before, the water would rise, but it was just a little, and it would quickly recede,” Adrian recalled.
“Previously, the water below was for consumption, drinking, eating, and so on, but now it’s not possible because of the company. Due to the waste (mud), it can’t be consumed anymore,” said Agustinus Patapata (21), Adrian’s son.
“Oh, it’s really different now. It used to flood too, but it was sand, not mud,” Adrian added.
It’s been over two decades that the village communities in the Halmahera mining belt have been struggling against environmental changes. The flash floods are a ticking time bomb that could explode at any moment.
“After our crops are washed away, where do we go for food?” Agustinus asked.
This article can be republished under the Creative Commons BY NC ND license.
