Bougainville's mine pit poisons its waterways, but some say it's still worth $90 billion | ABC News

Decades ago, one of the biggest gold and copper mines in the world shut down in Bougainville, in Papua New Guinea. Subscribe: ab.co/1svxLVE Read more here: ab.co/3MM0S8S Its toxic legacy remains in the blue-tinted rivers and poisoned fish surrounding the crater, and locals want Rio Tinto to commit to remediation, saying pollution still affects their daily lives.
But the local government says the mine pit is still worth over $90 billion and wants it re-opened to fund its independence movement.
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[@drpk6514]

Rio Tinto is doing the testing only because seems there are a lot of minerals and profit still there.

[@williemrebekahmaclutchie-e7654]

chinavirus crooks ok.

[@KB-dc1qo]

This was once my island home 😞❤️

[@jeffreystorer4966]

Rio Tinto safety first ,just not if it's in some One else's backyard

[@sjdtmv]

Even Lihir Island still dumps there mine tailings out into deep water by barge

[@Aussiejeep80]

You should do a story on Queenstown Tasmania. The queen river is a dead river from the mt Lyell mine. They didn’t have a tailings dam they just pumped the tailings straight into the river. It looks terrible the banks and stones are covered in a brown coloured containment an environmental disaster right in our own backyard.

[@tangiers365]

but its in tassie tho

[@paquitoignacio3449]

Those who profited in the mine exploration is the private contractors, government not the people.

[@SerpentineUsurper]

This report is very biased. There are many rivers in Bougainville but you failed to mention which rivers.

[@SerpentineUsurper]

Francis Ona was never mentioned in this report. Neither was Julius Chan. Please follow up with some more research please and let’s see some positive outcomes.

[@SerpentineUsurper]

Kuneka village was only one village mentioned. How long has the hut been there. What was the gentleman’s name who lived next to the river in Kuneka village.

[@pakjohn48]

These days every mining operation has to have a closure and remediation plan by government law. And this would also have been the case with BCL if it hadn't been forced to evacuate the mine and flee the civil war, leaving billions of dollars of infrastructure to rot and degrade plus many more billions of dollars in unmined gold and copper.

[@garyfoxall279]

About time these mines remediate their mines when they are done instead of leaving it to tax payer. Rio Tinto is one of the worst offenders

[@SerpentineUsurper]

More detail please

[@davidwilkie9551]

Worldwide experience, remediation is back to front. Another byproduct of burning stuff.

[@SerpentineUsurper]

Such a shame

[@lorenzoblum868]

6:15, 58 billions revenues? Health has a higher price. Try arithmetics.

[@tangiers365]

PAY UP RIO TINTO AUSTRALIAS SHAME

[@williemrebekahmaclutchie-e7654]

ok,poor people,turn 2 GOD ye ends of the earth 4- I AM GOD 4 there is no other says the Bible Amen.