Apenisa Waqairadovu 
Namosi landowners say concerns over the long-term health of river systems and the wellbeing of people living downstream were among the major reasons they opposed continued mining prospecting in the area.
Speaking following confirmation that the Namosi Joint Venture will withdraw from the district after nearly two decades of prospecting activity, Nabukebuke Namosi Holdings Director Petero Saunivalu says landowners chose to prioritise environmental protection over financial benefits.
Saunivalu says the proposed mining and prospecting sites were located upstream of communities connected by the river system, raising fears about possible impacts on water sources, biodiversity, and villages downstream.
“We’ve been receiving money, rental and everything, but we’ve decided that all of these issues are more important than the money that we’ve been receiving. We are staying upstream. We are thinking about our relatives from the Waidina River because back in time when there was no road, our relatives and our family used to travel down by bamboo raft and bilibili. We have got relatives right down the river and because of the risks that we see, it might affect the people downstream.”
Saunivalu says landowners were especially concerned about relatives and communities living further downriver.
Namosi landowners had spent years lobbying the government not to renew the licence because of unresolved environmental and social concerns.
Among the issues raised were fears over the impact mining could have on forests, waterways, and biodiversity in the highlands of Namosi.
