Sawedi Muhammad ¹ Suryanto Suryanto ¹ Ridwan Syam ¹ Bama A. Putra ^2*

• ¹ Hasanuddin University, Makassar, South Sulawesi, Indonesia
• ² University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom

The presence of a mining company in an area affects the living conditions of the surrounding community from an environmental, social, and economic perspective. This research aims to contribute to the literature on social perceptions concerning mining company operations by assessing the local societies' rate of rejection or acceptance of a mining company's extension of operating permit, along with reasons that justify the decision. We conducted semi-structured interviews with seven interest groups in four sub-districts in East Luwu Regency, comprising 79 participants. This research uses a combination of quantitative data collection and in-depth qualitative interviews to strengthen the sources' reasons for providing answers. The results show a high rejection rate expressed by communities living in the sub-districts where mining companies operate and a dominant voice to extend the existing mining company operating permit for locations that are of greater distance to the smelters. Suppose it turns out that the business permit is still being transferred to the existing company. In that case, the local community wants several priority improvements, namely, increasing the number of workers working in the factory, further boosting economic growth and empowerment programs carried out in affected areas, and improving post-mining environmental management. Therefore, this study contributes to the discourse of local community perceptions in mining areas, which may affect mining operations in the future.The presence of a mining company in an area influences the living conditions of the surrounding community in environmental, social, and economic aspects. To minimize environmental losses, a mining company must complete an environmental impact analysis document because noncompliance with social and environmental requirements will result in high costs for the mining company and thus can jeopardize the feasibility of mining operations (Kemp and Owen, 2013). It's just that affected communities in mining areas still often face challenges such as increasing numbers of immigrants, increasing difficulty in owning a home, and inflation (Moffat and Zhang, 2014;