Rio Tinto’s Panguna gold and copper mine in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, has caused an ongoing human rights and environmental disaster for Indigenous communities.

Panguna was previously one of the world’s largest copper and gold mines. From 1972 to 1989, the mine discharged over a billion tonnes of waste into river systems, devastating the environment and the livelihoods and cultural practices of local communities.

In 1989, an uprising by local people against this environmental destruction and economic inequality forced the abandonment of the mine and triggered a brutal decade-long civil war which cost the lives of up to 20,000 people.

No clean-up has ever taken place.

Generations of Bougainvilleans have been left to deal with the ongoing impacts. Mine infrastructure, levees and chemical storage facilities are collapsing, threatening nearby communities. Copper continues to contaminate local rivers, turning them a bright chemical blue. Forests and agricultural areas are smothered with vast mounds of mine waste, stretching almost 40km to the ocean. What was formerly one of the world’s largest mines is now a gaping wound, and the source of life-threatening risks.

It is time for Rio to remedy these impacts.

Indigenous communities, in partnership with the Human Rights Law Centre, brought a complaint against the company in 2020, leading to a landmark Impact Assessment that identified a wide range of human rights and environmental impacts.

Rio Tinto has said it is committed to working with stakeholders to establish a remedy framework, but, eighteen months on from the assessment, has provided little clarity about timeframes or the extent of its financial commitment.

Community members are calling on Rio Tinto to now move quickly address this disastrous legacy.

Join the call – add your name to the petition calling on Rio Tinto to provide urgent remedy and justice to affected Indigenous communities.

Rio Tinto’s Panguna gold and copper mine has caused an ongoing human rights and environmental disaster for Indigenous communities in Bougainville. 

Communities deserve to live on their land in safety and dignity, and to build a better future for their families in a healthy environment. 

I support communities’ calls for Rio Tinto to: 

• Repair the damage from the Panguna mine and clean up the local environment 

• Ensure that all risks to communities’ health and safety are thoroughly investigated and addressed 

• Provide reparation and support communities to get back on their feet 

• Undertake reconciliation according to Bougainvillean custom.  

Theonila Roka Matbob is a traditional landowner and the local Member of Parliament for the area where the mine is located, who spearheaded the human rights complaint against Rio Tinto says,

This entire process came about because of action taken by the communities themselves to raise our voices and bring Rio Tinto back to the table after many years of inaction. Every step of the impact assessment has been overseen by clan chiefs and community leaders who can speak in detail about the problems facing our people and what needs to be done about them.

And yet suddenly, just as the process reaches the critical point of discussing possible solutions, we find ourselves shut out of the room. This is not the way to rebuild trust with communities or design lasting solutions.

Our communities know the solutions that we need so that we can live on our land in safety again and we must have a seat at the table in any discussions about next steps.