Calls have emerged urging the government to disclose crucial documents, specifically the Environmental Impact Assessment and geotechnical survey reports for development projects.

During the consultation on Great Han apartment complex on Princess Road in Tamavua, a concerned resident confronted Rigieta Ravuiwasa, the Manager for Geological Survey at the Department of Mineral Resources, highlighting that Fiji lacks protective legislation mandating the release of such documents.

Ravuiwasa acknowledged that they had conducted a geotechnical survey for the project in 2014 and more recently, but the report had been exclusively provided to the developer.

“Our process at the department, the request came from Great Han International for the department to undertake the geotech report, therefore the report is under Great Han.”

In response, the resident argued that when statutory bodies like the Department of Mineral Resources perform assessments, there is no legal basis for withholding the results from the public.

She emphasized that if developers desire confidentiality for these assessments, they should opt to hire private companies for the task while keeping the information private.

“But when the regulations require these reports to be made, they have to be made public and you can’t stand behind the word process, what does process mean? Show me a law that says you can hide documents from the public.”

Local Government Minister Maciu Nalumisa when questioned about the concerns, pledged to review the pertinent legislative aspects before confirming the feasibility of releasing the documents.

“To get these information, public documents especially the reports is something I need to do tomorrow.”

One attendee at the consultation proposed a solution wherein the government would require developers to conduct their independent geotechnical surveys.

This suggestion aims to mitigate the perpetual risk associated with government-held development assessments.

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