...For years the company has assured communities, civil society and its investors that there is “no negative impact on the environment” from the QMM mine. That position remains at the core of QMM’s ‘water management roadmap’ (QMM, March 2022). In reality, QMM appears to be struggling to find a sustainable solution to manage the contaminants detected in its mine process wastewater. It now appears that the 13m dollar treatment plant, explained to shareholders at Rio Tinto’s 2022 AGM to offer a “permanent solution” to QMM’s wastewater management, is no longer a viable long-term option 1. After two years of our inquiries into this new treatment plant process, without receiving meaningful answers, QMM now acknowledges there is no in-country capacity to manage the waste residue – the exact contents of which remain unknown and amassing in ‘geotextile bags’ on the mine site.

Rio Tinto is failing to manage the deeper inquiry being sought into water quality at QMM. Promised reports are withheld2. On-site experimentation continues. Meanwhile, local communities remain exposed to potential health risks from contaminants on a daily basis...