abusesaffiliationarrow-downarrow-leftarrow-rightarrow-upattack-typeburgerchevron-downchevron-leftchevron-rightchevron-upClock iconclosedeletedevelopment-povertydiscriminationdollardownloademailenvironmentexternal-linkfacebookfiltergenderglobegroupshealthC4067174-3DD9-4B9E-AD64-284FDAAE6338@1xinformation-outlineinformationinstagraminvestment-trade-globalisationissueslabourlanguagesShapeCombined Shapeline, chart, up, arrow, graphLinkedInlocationmap-pinminusnewsorganisationotheroverviewpluspreviewArtboard 185profilerefreshIconnewssearchsecurityPathStock downStock steadyStock uptagticktooltiptwitteruniversalityweb

The content is also available in the following languages: 简体中文, 繁體中文

Article

9 Oct 2023

Author:
Jubilee Australia

Papua New Guinea: Project Sepik & Jubilee Australia welcome AusNCP's findings specifically on recommendation for PanAust to disclose dam break analysis

"Project Sepik And Jubilee Australia Welcome Findings From Human Rights Body On The Freida River Mine", 9 October 2023

Communities from Papua New Guinea’s Sepik region have today welcomed the findings of an Australian human rights body, which will pave the way for them to have a say on a giant copper and gold mine proposed to be built on their doorstep.

[...]

The Final Statement of the AusNCP, released this week, observed that the process for seeking and obtaining the community’s consent was ongoing and therefore did not find PanAust’s conduct to be in breach of the OECD Guidelines in this area. However, the AusNCP did consider that prior consent would be necessary from certain groups, which could include groups who were represented by Project Sepik and Jubilee Australia in the complaint.

The AusNCP made a number of other important recommendations, including that:

  • PanAust review its internal company procedures regarding free, prior and informed consent to ensure consistency with international standards;
  • any future stakeholder engagement must include Project Sepik and the communities it represents, and take into account the traditional governance groups or Haus Tambarans, which have already come out strongly against the mine.

Although the AusNCP did not find the company in breach of the OECD Guidelines in relation to environmental assessment, it recommended that PanAust disclose the dam break analysis to relevant communities, which was one of the main requests made by the complainants in this process – something the Sepik communities have been calling for for years. The NGOs have long maintained that not enough information has been released about the proposed tailings dam, which several experts have argued is potentially unsound.

Timeline

Privacy information

This site uses cookies and other web storage technologies. You can set your privacy choices below. Changes will take effect immediately.

For more information on our use of web storage, please refer to our Data Usage and Cookies Policy

Strictly necessary storage

ON
OFF

Necessary storage enables core site functionality. This site cannot function without it, so it can only be disabled by changing settings in your browser.

Analytics cookie

ON
OFF

When you access our website we use Google Analytics to collect information on your visit. Accepting this cookie will allow us to understand more details about your journey, and improve how we surface information. All analytics information is anonymous and we do not use it to identify you. Google provides a Google Analytics opt-out add on for all popular browsers.

Promotional cookies

ON
OFF

We share news and updates on business and human rights through third party platforms, including social media and search engines. These cookies help us to understand the performance of these promotions.

Your privacy choices for this site

This site uses cookies and other web storage technologies to enhance your experience beyond necessary core functionality.