PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Diversified miner Rio Tinto still has a significant way to go in earning back the trust of Traditional Owners in the Pilbara, in the wake of the 2020 destruction of the Juukan Gorge rock shelters, a new report has found.

The miner this week released its first progress report on improving Communities and Social Performance practices, as the company works to rebuild trust and relationships with Traditional Owners.

The report included direct feedback from Traditional Owner groups regarding commitments and progress made by the company thus far, with respondents expressing concern around the delay in action from Rio Tinto’s side, and with some saying the company was “still doing the bare minimum required to recover its reputation”.

Traditional Owner respondents have expressed their enthusiasm for a modernised Indigenous Land Use Agreement, with community members calling for greater inclusion in discussions.

“We are working hard to rebuild trust and meaningful relationships with the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura people and other Traditional Owners across Australia. We understand this will take time and consistent effort, but our absolute focus is on improving our engagement with Indigenous Peoples and host communities so that we can better understand their priorities and concerns, minimise our impacts, and responsibly manage cultural heritage,” Rio Tinto CEO Jakob Stausholm said.

“We thank those Traditional Owners who generously shared their feedback and perspectives. While their insights confirm we have much more to do, feedback like this is vital to shaping relationships that are respectful, genuine and inclusive.

“We know that we cannot change the past. But we can continue to seek out, listen to and respect different voices and perspectives, to ensure that in the future, cultural heritage sites of significance are treated with the care they deserve. And the changes we make should improve, over time, our engagement with Indigenous and First Nations communities in every region where we operate worldwide.”

The report outlines actions that Rio has taken to date, including ongoing remediation work at the Juukan Gorge, the start of agreement modernisation discussions with ten Pilbara Traditional Owner groups, a detailed review of the company’s heritage sites to ensure no significant cultural heritage sites were within existing mine plans, growing Indigenous leadership, and progressign the establishment of an Australian Advisory Group to better manage policies and positions important to Indigenous groups.