Researchers at the University of Western Australia are trying to perfect a way of mining that does away with digging.
Such a mining method could huge implications for the Pacific where a number of fragile eco-systems have been destroyed by mine waste.
A professor at the university's School of Earth Sciences, Henning Prommer, says the technique, that's still in its early stages, entails passing electric currents through the ore body by a process called electro-migration.
He spoke with Don Wiseman who began by saying it sounds too good to be true.
Aerial view of the Porgera gold mine. Photo: Zijin Mining
