Mining Management of Nonmetallic Minerals and Rocks Based on Government Policy Mohammad Jhanattan 1 , Bambang Shergi Laksmono 2 , Dwi Nowo Martono 1 , Herdis Herdiansyah 1* 1 School of Environmental Science, Universitas Indonesia, Jakarta 10430, Indonesia 2 Faculty of Social and Political Science, Universitas Indonesia, Depok 16424, Indonesia Corresponding Author Email: herdis@ui.ac.id Copyright: ©2023 IIETA. This article is published by IIETA and is licensed under the CC BY 4.0 license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). https://doi.org/10.18280/ijei.060402 ABSTRACT Received: 20 September 2023 Revised: 24 October 2023 Accepted: 4 November 2023 Available online: 28 December 2023 This study discusses government policy, focusing on political-ecological commitment to licensing and tax collection for non-metallic mineral and rock mining, which is spread across almost 30 regional government areas in North Sumatra, Indonesia. Based on existing data, there are 700 mines that are not licensed, operate freely and without supervision by the government, causing serious environmental damage and state financial losses from the mining tax sector. The research method uses qualitative with purposive (exclusive) sampling and field studies. The research results showed that the commitment to managing permits and taxation of non-metal minerals and rocks continues to be problematic, and includes the non-implementation of supervision of mining permits and tax collection and the lack of special policies and handling procedures by regional and central governments. Handling internal mining governance policies and the monitoring process requires assistance from law enforcement officials such as the Regional Police and Corruption Eradication Commission to prevent fraud in granting mining business permits. Through this assistance mechanism, examples of sustainable mining monitoring and supervision will be produced that are useful for the government so that mining business actors can continue to be supervised with official permits. Keywords: safety, non-metal rocks and minerals, supervision, stakeholders, environmental 1. INTRODUCTION The issue of permits, acceptance, and regulations in the non- metallic and rock minerals sector requires a strong commitment from regional heads, especially the Governor of North Sumatra (Indonesia), to be able to manage his staff in controlling unlicensed mines while remaining free to operate. In 2020, North Sumatra held simultaneous Regional Head Elections (Regional Head Campaign) in 34 regencies and cities. As a result, several new regional heads were elected with their visions, missions, and political promises. During the campaign, it is rare to find political promises or commitments for Regional Head Candidates that focus on environmental improvement. Commitment to environmental monitoring and control of business licenses is also based on the regional head’s vision and mission when appointed as Regent or Mayor. Regional empowerment also contains political promises, especially post-decentralization or expansion between parent regions and growth. New areas resulting from the increase have various environmental problems with natural resources. The best way to address the social impacts of conservation and the change and development of natural resources is to work toward a world where conservation is no longer necessary [1]. Indonesia is an illustrative example of how a profound restructuring of a centralized state has produced mixed policy outcomes. After the collapse of the authoritarian regime and the advent of the reform era, it gave substantial autonomy to its regional governments [2]. District-level local government, in particular, is empowered with important prerogatives in several policy areas and a larger area of jurisdiction. In contrast, the province, a political unit more significant than the district and national, has more limited jurisdiction. The main obstacle to district/municipality territorial authority in exploration is the issue of permit arrangements that need to be complied with by business actors. A series of licensing arrangements aim to reduce barriers to investment, helping to open new frontiers and weaken instruments designed to minimize environmental and social impacts [3]. The government’s political commitment to controlling non- metal and rock mineral permits which are problematic and result in environmental damage is an action to address issues related to political ecology [4]. The Central Government and local government must mutually communicate government instructions issued in control [5]. It is stated that sustainable economic development requires the availability of natural resources and supporting infrastructure from the government [6]. The government’s attitude toward the commitment and implementation of political ecology has become essential in resolving licensing issues and collecting levies for non-metal and rock minerals. The process of creating an excellent political ecology is the need of the state and the expectations of society [7]. Mining’s contribution to regional development still needs to be debated and clarified. The gift fluctuates throughout the mining cycle. During mine construction, there was immense pressure on the labor market and housing [8]. Political ecologists detail about problematic in the ten International Journal of Environmental Impacts Vol. 6, No. 4, December, 2023, pp. 165-181 Journal homepage: http://iieta.org/journals/ijei 165