Ocean Island - Phosphate Extraction

Ocean Island, also known as Banaba Island, has been ruthlessly exploited for its rich phosphate deposits.

The destruction of Ocean Island is another sad story of colonial exploitation and lack of consideration for the indigenous population.

Much of the phosphate land of the Ocean Island was literally taken from the Banabans and loaded into ships to support agriculture in Australia and New Zealand.

The British Phosphate Commission and its predecessor, the British Phosphate Company, paid huge dividends to its shareholders while by the time its operations ceased 22 million tonnes of land had been removed from Ocean Island.