Effects of mining in Nauru

[5] The reliance on phosphate mining as the main source of income has made Nauru extremely vulnerable to fluctuations in global commodity prices, leading to economic instability and uncertainty.

[6] The depletion of the phosphate deposits has also left the country with limited options for sustainable economic development, as the once fertile land is now unusable for agriculture or other purposes.

[9] Due to the extent of the mining, there is not much that can be done now to alleviate the agricultural problems that Nauruans face besides monetary reparations, which Nauru pursued from the Australian Government in 1989, through the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands,[10][11] The lawsuit was settled in 1993 in an out-of-court payout of $120 million AUD over 20 years.

[11] Phosphate mining has removed most of the vegetation and tree coverage that Nauru had, leaving the land and the people vulnerable to intense heat on an island so close to the Equator.

[13] Along the coast, where most Nauruans are forced to live now due to the land reduction caused by mining, the coastal plants that remain are vital for the "provision of shade and animal and plant habitats; protection from wind, erosion, flood, and salt water incursion; land stabilization; protection from the desiccating effects of salt spray; and soil improvement and mulching," especially as the coast is expected to continue eroding with the increasing effects of climate change.