"Toxic waste", "toxic tailings", yes — but "toxic sludge" never. Arsenic is a toxin, and it’s not the only toxin that will be held in this "tailings dam". Another use of words Mr Spring took exception to. By midday we had agreed I would meet Mr Spring at the site on Wednesday, two days later. Some of the worst industrial disasters in modern history have been tailings dam failures, even at facilities that had been declared safe."

Source: Otago Daily Times February 23, 2026 15:44 UTC