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Assessing the Influence of Fly River Discharge on the Torres Strait

出版	Tropical Water Quality Hub, 2021
ISBN	19255149439781925514940
URL	http://books.google.com.hk/books?id=LYwj0AEACAAJ&hl=&source=gbs_api

註釋The Torres Strait is an area of Australia that has relatively few anthropogenic inputs of trace metals, however, concerns have been raised about the impacts of mining occurring in Papua New Guinea (PNG) and the transboundary transport of metal contaminants into the Torres Strait. Under certain climatic conditions, dilute Fly River plume waters have been detected across the northern Torres Strait, east of the Warrior Reefs, as far west as Saibai Island and south to Masig Island. It is important to note that this is a natural process that has been occurring for several thousand years. However, in 1984 the Ok Tedi copper mine opened in the headwaters of the Fly River and the Porgera gold mine opened in 1990 in the headwaters of the Strickland River (a major tributary of the Fly River) in PNG. This has resulted in significant impacts on the river system including widespread contamination of the Fly River by copper (which is highly toxic to aquatic life), increased turbidity and changes to river geomorphology through widespread deposition of sediments. Estimates suggest that mining operations have increased sediment discharge from the whole of the Fly River by 40%. Given the close proximity of the Torres Strait to the mouth of the Fly River, concerns have been raised since the start of mine operations that trans-boundary pollution may occur. -- Summary.