MINING TRAINING TO BE ROLLED OUT FOR ISABEL AND CHOISEUL
Gold Ridge Mining Limited billboard. Photo credit: SIBC.
A training course on mining will soon be rolled out across the Isabel and Choiseul Provinces.
The What is Mining – Train the Trainer Course, launched last week, was developed by the Isabel Mothers Union and The Nature Conservancy Solomon Islands, with technical support from The University of Queensland.
The course was opened by the Deputy Premier of Isabel, Michael Meredi.
It was created following resolutions made late last year during a public mining forum held in the provincial capital of Buala.
One of those resolutions identified a lack of information on mining to be a major problem for communities lying within or near mining sites or ‘tenements’.
The What is Mining? course is the first response to that call and was held over three days in the highland village of Kolomola at the southern end of Isabel.
Over 50 community members attended, representing districts across Isabel island.
The aim of the course is to provide participants with a good basic understanding of what mining is, the legal issues, the types of mining planned for the Solomon Islands, possible environmental and social impacts, and the possible benefits communities can expect.