Source: Australian Associated Press

A mining company is appealing the Environmental Protection Agency's decision to reject its application to mine ironsands from the seabed off the Taranaki coast.

The EPA's decision-making committee rejected Trans-Tasman Resources' application on June 18, which was seen as a victory for conservation efforts but a blow to the government's desire to help mineral extraction projects boost the economy.

Source: MILDA/ PACNEWS

Source: Kiwis Against Seabed Mining

The EPA’s decision to decline a proposal to mine black sand from the seabed of the South Taranaki Bight was heralded today by New Zealand’s only NGO focusing solely on the issue, Kiwis Against Seabed Mining.

Source: PNG Loop

Nautilus Minerals has reached a commercial resolution with the Government for its equity participation in the Solwara 1 Project.

Chairman Geoffrey Louden announced this at the Annual General Meeting in Toronto, Ontario last week.

Source: Radio Australia

There's concern that logging of forests will continue (Credit: Audience submitted) 

Community groups have welcomed the Papua New Guinea Government's announcement it will abolish special agricultural business leases.

The leases paved the way for millions of hectares of customarily-owned land to be taken over by large corporations for so-called agricultural projects.

Source: Post Courier

THE proposal to mine the sea bed area between the west coast of Namatanai in New Ireland Province and East New Britain needs more public awareness and debate, says East New Britain Governor Ereman ToBaining Jr.

Coastal Cliffs on Patea Beach

Papua New Guinea is in the same boat as the New Zealanders and the people's fight to conserve their native resources by which the oceans of water protects has come to success after which the Environmental Protection Authority proved that there is uncertainty in the environmental damage that will be caused by this experiment. Papua New Guinea governing bodies can feed off a lesson or two from its neighbouring pacific island country.

Source: PNG Loop

THE East New Britain provincial government has maintained that it must get 60 per cent of the equity shares of 5 per cent offloaded by the National Government in the Solwara 1 project.

This stance was reaffirmed during the Provincial Executive Council (PEC) meeting last week where Mineral Resources Authority (MRA) was invited to do a presentation on the equity shares between East New Britain and New Ireland provinces.

The 1.2 million Lutherns represented by the Director for inter-Church Relation and Ecumenism stated that the Lutheran, PNG Prime Minister, Peter O'Neill should stop the experimental  seabed mining prospects as it goes against the teachings of God and that of which Lutherans (that contributed to the PMs position in parliament) to protect Gods creation.

Source: PNG Loop

Source: PNG Loop

Mining Minister and member for Namatanai, Byron Chan is summoning all the support he can get to fully revitalise the Lihir Memorandum of Agreement (MOA).

The full revitalisation of the Lihir MOA is believed willl pave the way for Canada-based Nautilus Minerals to pursue their development agenda on the highly controversial Solwara 1 project off the coast of Namatanai as well as pending issues on Lihir and Simberi gold mines.