The price of progress - 12th April 2023

Indonesia's the top nickel producer in the world. However, traditional farming areas have been replaced with nickel mining. This has polluted the surrounding sea which has turned red. There's high demand for this metal, which is essential for electric vehicle batteries.

Due to this high demand, companies are clearing and mining farming areas in Sulawesi. This shift in the economy is a major threat to families who rely on selling cloves, like Royani.

Royani: "Clove trees are all we have. I want to send my child to college but now where can I get the money from? In Mosolo, most of the parents, who sent their children to universities, earned the money from clove farming. Nickel is only for the miners. We don't get the benefit. We'll suffer losses instead."

Local people are fighting for their land. But, they're pushing back against powerful economic powers. Wealthy countries, like China and South Korea, alongside car company Tesla and Brazilian mining company Vale, have already begun mining and processing nickel in Sulawesi. The environmental effects on the local villages are clear to villager Guntur.

Guntur: "This is all because of the mining. To be honest, it's the mine. In the past when there were no mines, the waters were not like this. It was so clean. We could bathe and fish, now we can't. When we throw bait into the sea, then pull it out, the bait is covered in red. Before, when we threw the bait into the sea, it would stay clean."

Rainwater from the mines runs into the sea and turns it red. This polluted water kills the fish population which the local people rely on for food.

The problem seems unlikely to end soon, as Indonesian President Joko Widodo's aim is for the country to achieve developed nation status. This suggests that the mining will continue.