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Drone footage shows offshore and onshore mining at Indonesia’s ‘tin island’

09 June 2021, 8:53 am 10 minutes

DRONE FOOTAGE OF OFFSHORE AND ONSHORE TIN MINING

An aerial view shows wooden pontoons equipped to dredge the seabed for deposits of tin ore off the coast of Toboali, on the southern shores of the island of Bangka, Indonesia, May 1, 2021. REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan

Supriandi Jamil, 41, a local fisherman, walks through the water as he helps other fishermen unload their catch in Batu Perahu village in Toboali, on the southern shores of the island of Bangka, Indonesia, May 2, 2021. REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan

Fish lie inside a jerrycan in Batu Perahu village, in Toboali, on the southern shores of the island of Bangka, Indonesia, May 2, 2021. REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan

An artisanal tin miner uses a plastic tub to check the sand of tin ore while working on a pontoon off the coast of Toboali, southern shores of the island of Bangka, Indonesia, May 1, 2021. REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan

A fisherman pours water out of a boat on Sampur Beach, in Pangkal Pinang, on the island of Bangka, Indonesia, April 30, 2021. REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan

Stacks of refined tin blocks, ready to be exported, are seen inside a warehouse in Pangkal Pinang, on the island of Bangka, Indonesia, May 4, 2021. REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan

Hendra, 51, a tin miner, stands on top of his pontoon while monitoring the mining operation off the coast of Toboali, on the southern shores of the island of Bangka, Indonesia, May 1, 2021. Hendra operates six pontoons, each manned by three to four workers. He is among scores of artisanal miners who partner with PT Timah to exploit the state miner’s concessions. The miners are paid about 70,000 to 80,000 rupiah ($4.90 to $5.60) per kg of tin sand they pump up, and a pontoon typically produces about 50 kg a day, Hendra said. REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan

Drone footage shows how, amid thinning reserves, Indonesia’s tin miners have widened their operations from Bangka Island to off-shore pontoons.

Diesel generators emit black plumes as steel pipes ram into the sea floor to extract sand, which is sifted for tin ore.

The practice threatens the biodiversity of nearby coasts, according to an environmental group, and disrupts the livelihood of fishermen who say they are now catching fewer fish.

High tin prices, driven by global demand for electronics manufacturing, has kept miners, both with and without licenses, busy.

Indonesia is the world’s biggest exporter of tin, which is used in everything from food packaging to electronics and now green technologies.

Fitch Solutions, a unit of Fitch Group, expects the scarcity of tin to drive prices to near the 2011 record of $33,500/tonne by mid-2021

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Drone footage shows offshore and onshore mining at Indonesia’s ‘tin island’

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