The government hasn’t breached any laws in granting the environmental permit for the Wafi-Golpu project in Morobe.
This was according to Environment, Conservation and Climate Change Minister Wera Mori, who added that the deep-sea tailings placement (DSTP) was the best way for tailings disposal for the project.
“We have not breached any laws in granting the permit,” he said. “Mining is all about science. There was a paramount mining safety practice considered before the permit was granted. A huge amount of mine waste can’t be stored in a tailings dam. It’s a time bomb itself. Basamuk, Simberi and Lihir all use DSTP. The incident at Basamuk was a result of a systems failure, it was not related to DSTP.”
This was in response to the Morobe government who wanted the government to withdraw the environment permit and wanted an alternative for the project.
Governor Ginson Saonu said that if all else fails, they will bring this issue to court. “The future of Morobe is in Wafi-Golpu so the State must do the right thing,” he said. “There must be proper people-leader interaction for meaningful participation between resource owners, the Government and all interested parties.”
