(Bloomberg) — Rio Tinto Group contributed to widespread damage due to waste left at an abandoned copper mine in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, and risks to local communities are ongoing, a report has found.
Panguna, which was operated by Rio subsidiary Bougainville Copper, was once one of the world’s largest copper mines. It was shut in 1989 after local protests over the disbursement of revenue from the mine degenerated into a civil war that killed as many as 20,000 people.
The project has remained abandoned and Rio has struggled to obtain access to the site for remedial purposes. In 2021, Rio agreed to fund an independent study, undertaken by environmental firm Tetra Tech Coffey. The report released Friday found serious contamination to the Jaba-Kawerong river and its tributaries, while the tailings dam — where waste from the mine is stored — is unstable and at risk of collapse.
For the rest of this article: https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/investing/2024/12/06/rios-abandoned-panguna-copper-mine-still-a-threat-report-says/