World
Mining giant joins fight to stop killer toad march across Australia
Rio Tinto is jointly funding a A$28m "toad containment zoe" to protect the Pilbara region.
BBC World•
Rio Tinto is ploughing millions of dollars into stopping the poisonous cane toad reaching the Pilbara region of western Australia, where the mining giant has a vast iron ore operation.
The firm, alongside Curtin University in Perth and others, will spend A$28m (£14.5m) building a "toad containment zone" to prevent the pest travelling south.
While the cane toad is not a direct threat to Rio Tinto's business, it produces toxins lethal to native wildlife and poses a threat to Pilbara's ecosystem.
The plan is to cut off the toad's water supply by building a barrier across 7,500 sq km (2,895 sq m) of land between the Great Sandy Desert and the Indian Ocean.