Abstract: Environmental destruction due to illegal mining activities can be found in various areas of Indonesia, such as South Kalimantan Province. Illegal mining occurs due to several factors, including weak law enforcement. However, during the current era where there is a rampant use of social media, making illegal mining activities viral online was found to encourage the law-enforcing apparatus in Indonesia to enforce the law against such crimes. This paper aims to analyze the relationship between social media and law enforcement against illegal mining in South Kalimantan. This was empirical legal research that utilized the phenomenological approach. The data were collected through observation and interviews with several key figures. Apart from that, the authors also used data from articles and journals. Research results showed that during this current social media era, law enforcement can be optimized through several steps, such as by introducing the law, creating posters, and encouraging society participate by making occurring cases viral online. It was also found that the environment in South Kalimantan has been damaged by mining. Therefore, in this digitalization era, social media has a great role in helping law enforcers find facts to prosecute illegal mining perpetrators. By optimizing the use of social media, law enforcers can obtain new evidence to arrest the perpetrators of illicit mining activities. This is to prevent the widespread occurrence of environmental destruction as it is crucial to protect the environment for the sake of the current and future generations.

Keywords: Social media, law enforcement, illegal mining, environment, South Kalimantan, Indonesia

Pages: 813-822