Category: mine waste

A Sense of place, a sense of loss: Australia’s Mining Legacies

With the construction phase of the mining boom over and demand for Australia’s energy and mineral resources waning, now is a good time to reflect upon the issue of mining legacies and what they mean for our connections to landscape and place – our ‘sense of place’. The extractive...

Australian uranium in Africa – our responsibility?

Mining in Africa Poor working conditions, a high exposure to radiation, deaths and injuries to workers, road accidents, toxic spills and the discharge of radioactive tailings into a local river are just some of the reported incidents at Malawi’s Kayelekera Uranium Mine (KUM). The mine, located in the north...

Out of sight out of mind: marine mine waste disposal in Papua New Guinea

Waste-in the sea Papua New Guinea (PNG) could be said to be a world leader in Deep Sea Tailings Placement (DSTP). DSTP involves discharging of finely ground rock, chemical reagents and water used in the mineral extraction process directly into the ocean and has been carried out since the...

Rehabilitating Mirarr Land: Mining to end at Ranger?

­Ranger uranium mine operates within the bounds of the dual World Heritage listed Kakadu National Park. Ranger was established through a no-consent lease on the traditional lands of the Mirarr people in the late 1970s. Ranger is the only operating asset of mining company Energy Resources of Australia (ERA)....

Increasing transparency and accountability for Woodlark Island

In February’s Mining Monitor, MPI outlined a proposed and potentially damaging mine on Woodlark Island in Papua New Guinea, highlighting a number of potential ecological and social impacts. Part of MPI’s work is to make information about such projects available and accessible, recognising that freely available information is critical...

Mining in Morobe

Mining in Morobe, Papua New Guinea: Impacts from mining along the Watut River The Mineral Policy Institute’s report into mining impacts along the Watut River in the Morobe Province of Papua New Guinea is now publicly available. The report was officially released and distributed late September2014 to many of...