Charges filed against Rio Tinto

Zlatko Kokanovic, spokesman for the Ne Damo Jadar (Not Giving Up Jadar) organization, said the criminal charges were filed against Rio Tinto and its officials. He said the drill site JDRHG021 PZ has been leaking for several years. “We have documents showing that the company paid damages for the leak to the owner of the farm and because nothing grows around the drill site and we’re waiting to see how the prosecution will react,” he told N1.

He said the police, environmental and agriculture inspectors have investigated the site.

Rio Tinto said in a statement that the claims made by Ne Damo Jadar are not true, adding that a company team investigated, found that a small amount of natural highly-mineralized underground water leaked and was not a danger to people and the environment.