Mining giant Rio Tinto Ltd should negotiate a restitution package with the Aborigines affected by its destruction of two ancient rock shelters to expand an Australian iron ore mine, an inquiry panel said yesterday.
The panel released an interim report in which it also recommended Rio Tinto ensure a full reconstruction of the rock shelters at its own expense, and laid out broader industry guidance that included reviewing consent practices and a moratorium on mining in the affected places.
Canberra’s parliamentary inquiry into the legal destruction of the 46,000-year-old Juukan Gorge rock shelter in May heard testimony from dozens of people and more than 140 submissions from miners, heritage specialists, and Aboriginal and civil society groups.
Photo: Reuters
The committee aims to finish its report in the second half of next year once it has heard testimony from other states after COVID-19-related disruptions.
As well as castigating Rio Tinto on its failures, it proposed mining industry and legal reforms.
“Rio Tinto’s conduct reflects a corporate culture which prioritized commercial gain over the kind of meaningful engagement with Traditional Owners that should form a critical part of their social license to operate,” it found.
The inquiry did not spell out what, if any, financial compensation Rio Tinto should pay to the traditional owners of the sites in Western Australia, the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura people.
“I think the only risk is that Rio has to pay some form of restitution,” said Glyn Lawcock, an analyst at UBS in Sydney.
Even then, in the context of Rio Tinto’s US$123 billion valuation, the amount was not likely to be material, although recommendations to overhaul legislation could result in delays to industry mine expansion plans in the years ahead, he said.
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