Ramu NiCo Management (MCC) Limited (RNML/Ramu NiCo) and a team from Conservation Protection Authority (CEPA) and Madang Provincial Government visited Long Island in Madang Province to do publicity on the Deep Sea Tailings Placement (DSTP) built at the Basamuk Refinery in Rai Coast District.
The publicity team visited the island on the 26th at Matapun Village at Saidor Local Level Government and 27th of October at the Kaut Village explaining to the locals on how the DSTP system operates, the monitoring process and the reason why DSTP is an environmentally friendly disposal system.
The DSTP publicity from Ramu Nickel and Cobalt Project in Madang Province is a yearly planned program. Ramu Nickel and Cobalt Project’s Health, Safety and Environment Department organizes the publicity in the province along the coastal communities, to explain the harmlessness of the DSTP system.
RNML’s Health, Safety and Environment Department Leader Steven Opur said in previous years RNML visited other coastal islands in Madang such as Karkar Island, Bagbag Island and other coastal communities along the coast of Madang, and this year, it has visited Long Island.
“The publicity is held to help people understand how the DSTP system in Basamuk has always been safe and prevent any negative rumors from spreading in villages,” he said.
The publicity gathered a lot of interests of attendants from Matapun Village Ward 32 and Kaut Ward 33. They are glad to know that their marine ecosystem is always in good condition.
Community Leader and Ward Councilor for Ward 32 in Saidor LLG Councilor Morit Samkoi said the publicity promoted people’s understanding of DSTP system in Madang Province.
He said a lot of the villagers are illiterate and need the assistance of a translator, who translated everything into the native dialect. They now know the condition of their ocean.
Conservation Protection Authority (CEPA)’s Principle Environment Scientist Pitzz Murphy who travelled with 3 other officers from the head office in Port Moresby also went with the team, and said the DSTP system of the mine has been maintaining records and has “no harm” on the marine ecosystem in the Bismark Sea or the local fishing zones along the coast of Madang.
“We also come to Madang and do independent testing and assessments by ourselves and have found out that the DSTP system of the Ramu Nickel and Cobalt Project is safe,” Murphy said.
He added, “Ramu NiCo also sends us their quarterly test results that they collect and send results to Australia for lab analysis, and it has proven that their DSTP system is well maintained over the years since the mine operated.”
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