Digging and Piping Out Papua New Guinea Dry

Papua New Guinea is one of the most natural resource rich countries in the world. With a total of about 6 million people only and vast deposits of gold, copper, forestry, fisheries and agricultural resources, PNG’s economy is likened to that of a craving animal that is incapable of feedings itself. With the current PNG-Queensland gas pipeline deal just about finalised, allow me to express some insight, or rather, foresight into the outcome of it all. It is rather sad to note that PNG’s natural non-renewable resources are continually, negligently being traded out cheaply without leaving behind significant, tangible, and sustainable long-term economic benefits. One after the other, all our natural resources are being drained out and the country is still facing increasing hurdles which we have not been able to totally overcome; our social and economic problems seem to exhilarate at overwhelming rates everyday.

No Sustainable Long Term Plan

It is about time the current Mining and Petroleum minister carefully consider and carry out a cost-benefit analysis of what PNG has gained so far from trading our precious non-renewable resources. For instance, Bougainville Copper Limited (BCL) did sustain the economy of PNG for a good number of years but it has cost the nation a great many sacrifices. The current eventual down-turn of the economy is largely due to the era of the Bougainville crisis and corrupt governance by and during the time of Pais Wingti as Prime Minister. We have also lost the fight in maintaining a unified PNG. Bougainville now still faces the problem of creating a stable autonomous government.

Fly River Habitat Destroyed

Have a look at the sad outcome of Ok Tedi Mining Limited (OTML). The environmental damage of the venture is an unforgivable scar, nothing compared to the benefits we have obtained so far. A natural habitat that lay undisturbed for thousands of years has been drastically, permanently destroyed and polluted. The current problem of acid rock drainage (ARD) is a real disaster for the river ecosystem and the river banks where there is sedimentation. The majority of the land mass of Western Province is basically a lake, feeding from the main Fly River and sedimentation has spread wide and far, covering a massive land mass area. The effect of acid rock drainage will be far greater than what we are seeing today.

BHP Knew It All

It is quite obvious that BHP carefully predicted this disaster and pulled out, simply handing over a multi-million dollar project to the hands of PNG government and the people of Western Province. Yes, there was a major court case between BHP and the people of Western Province but the real reasons for BHP exiting from OTML was to avoid the long-term commitments of rectifying huge environmental mistakes and the enormous compensation monies that it would have paid if it still operated OTML under its umbrella today. The findings of the ARD where never made public and these were BHP’s highly classified information. Even independent findings were unable to decipher the ARD factor. If they did, BHP must have done its homework and did a good job of silencing them. After making millions and more than enough from OTML, BHP simply exited. It is quite questionable why BHP could ever abandon a gigantic money spinning machine; such a question was never raised during the proceedings of the handover.