Venezuela’s push to reopen the Orinoco Mining Arc to global investors for gold, bauxite, coltan, iron ore and nickel is colliding with the presence of at least four uncontacted Indigenous peoples (Jödi/Hoti, Uwottüja/Piaroa, Yanomami and Eñepá/Panare) whose territories overlap or lie close to planned mining zones. Survival International reports 196 uncontacted groups worldwide, over 96% threatened by extractives, with Venezuelan Yanomami already facing mercury contamination, infectious disease and violent crime linked to illegal gold mining. The op-ed argues that without legally recognised territories, buffer zones, FPIC-compliant frameworks and IRMA-level safeguards, large-scale mining and associated access roads risk illegal encroachment, corporate complicity and potentially existential impacts on isolated communities.

NatureScot has launched a public consultation on the Scottish Planning Biodiversity Metric, a standardised tool required under National Planning Framework 4 (2023) to evidence biodiversity net gain on large-scale developments. The metric starts from a baseline habitat survey – covering grassland, peatland and woodland – to quantify pre-development biodiversity value and calculate the area and type of habitat creation or restoration needed to offset and enhance losses. Consultation on the working tool, user guide and habitat condition assessment runs to 30 November, with a refined version due in spring 2027.

Public consultation has opened on Tasmania’s next road safety strategy, which will build on the current Towards Zero Tasmanian Road Safety Strategy 2017–2026 and its data on serious and fatal crashes. The new framework will benchmark against national and global best-practice, including Safe System principles and low-speed urban design, while tailoring measures to local conditions such as rural highways and regional freight routes. For civil designers and traffic engineers, outcomes are likely to influence speed zoning, barrier selection, intersection treatments and funding priorities for high‑risk corridors.