The community of Christmas Island could face an economic collapse after a proposal to expand the island's phosphate mine was knocked back over fears of the impact to the island's wildlife, including its world-famous red crabs.
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| Red crabs make their way along a Christmas Island Road during their annual migration from the rainforest to the ocean to mate. |
Phosphate Resources Limited has been mining on the Indian Ocean Territory for more than 100 years, but claims it needs to clear more crown land to access new deposits in order for the operations to remain viable.
Under the expansion, the company wanted to clear an additional 6.83 hectares of land to undertake exploration drilling to determine the extent of more phosphate resources, in what has been described as a pristine area of the island.
Read the story by Kathryn Diss from ABC News - “Christmas Island facing economic collapse as mine expansion rejected to save red crabs.”
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