Miner’s proposed DSTP system reasonable

Letters, Normal

I believe the deep sea tailings placement (DSTP) system proposed by Ramu NiCo project is reasonable as far as the environment is concerned.
One of the obvious reasons is that DSTP project will not only be used by Ramu NiCo but has also been implemented in some of PNG’s bigger mines such as Lihir gold and Misima.
The general concept of the proposed DSTP at Basamuk include :
* Discharging on the edge of an extended drop-off, about 400m from the shore with a total discharge rate of 14,000 tonnes a day and a final tailings quantity of about 100 million tonnes for the project on the sea floor at the Basamuk submarine canyon some 1-1.6km deep;
* Discharging below the euphotic zone (where less marine animals exist) at a discharge depth of 150m which will not interfere much with marine animals living about 100m below sea level; 
* Tailings discharged will be in the form of a coherent turbidity which flows with a minimum dispersal until it reaches the base of the drop-off, therefore, minimising the change of tailings upwelling back into shallow waters; and 
* Final tailings will be neutralised to a pH of 8.2 before discharging, therefore, predicted impact on marine life, especially fish, coral reefs and beaches are expected to be minimal.
Moreover, the project is nearly completed which means millions of kina had been spent already.
For the court to restrain the company from installing and operating the DSTP as proposed and, which has been approved, in my opinion, is unjust.

 

Otto Bosip
Lae