GeoEye Foundation Satellite Imagery Reveals Environmental Protection Issues

Indigenous tribes in West Papua, Indonesia, were devastated as they saw Mount Grasberg, one of the largest Sudirman mountain peaks, reduced to a vast hole in the ground due to the rapid growth of the local Freeport mine. The mine's activities had been garnering international attention given its operator was failing to address growing human rights and environmental protection issues. Imagery grants by the GeoEye Foundation allowed Dr. Chris Lavers to document area loss in nearby alpine glaciers, which are very close to the equator and considered to be sensitive markers of climate change.

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