The independent Panguna Mine Legacy Impact Assessment (PMLIA), in its Phase 1 report released in December 2024, identified safety risks associated with geotechnical instability in the slopes of the open pit.
Persistent alluvial and small-scale mining (ASM) activities have contributed to these risks, alongside erosion and water run-off.
As a precautionary measure, the Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG) erected warning signs and issued text message alerts in December and January to individuals in the area, warning of potential landslides exacerbated by informal ASM activities.
As part of ongoing follow-up efforts, officials from the ABG, Bougainville Copper Limited (BCL), the Panguna Landowners Interim Council (PLIC), Ioro 2 Community Government, and Central, North, and South veterans met with local landowners and alluvial miners on 7 May.
The meeting in Panguna aimed to raise further awareness and foster cooperation. BCL outlined the need for safe access to the site to carry out early-stage exploration activities under its existing EL01 exploration licence. Both the ABG and BCL respectfully requested that informal miners vacate high-risk areas in the interest of public safety and to enable BCL’s planned pre-feasibility project work.
Following this engagement, the ABG convened a multi-agency meeting on 5 June to begin developing a Trigger Action Response Plan (TARP), designed to complement existing disaster management plans and protocols.
Global consulting firm Tetra Tech Coffey, which has been engaged to carry out the PMLIA work, presented updates on geotechnical monitoring now underway as part of Phase 2 of the assessment. The ABG will have access to relevant data on ground movement at vulnerable sites within the pit and along the mine access road.
