“a start” in remedying the adverse consequences of Rio Tinto’s operations at Panguna, which was once among of the world’s largest and most profitable copper and gold mines.
“Our people have been living with the disastrous impacts of Panguna for many years and the situation is getting worse. The mine continues to poison our rivers with copper,” the minister said. “Our kids get sick from the pollution and communities downstream are now being flooded with mine waste. Some people have to walk two hours a day just to get clean drinking water. In other areas, communities’ sacred sites are being flooded and destroyed.”
Although the assessment, which will identify environmental and human rights impacts of the mine, will be funded by Rio Tinto, the company has not yet committed to acting on the recommendations that will be made by the independent third party. Therefore, Human Rights Law Centre’s legal director Keren Adams noted that while the assessment is a welcome decision, it is imperative that the mining giant follows it up by comprehensive remediation work.
“Communities urgently need access to clean water for drinking and bathing. They need solutions to stop the vast mounds of tailings waste eroding into the rivers and flooding their villages, farms and fishing areas. They need their children to be able to walk to school without having to wade through treacherous areas of quicksand created by the mine waste. This is what remediation means in real terms for the people living with these impacts,” she noted.
