LONDON, Feb. 8 (UPI) -- Serious human rights abuses are linked to an aluminum refinery in India operated by a British company, Amnesty International said Monday.

Air and water pollution by the refinery in Orissa is damaging the health of local residents and hampering their access to water, the humanitarian group said in a news release. Plans by Vedanta Resources, based in Britain, for a six-fold expansion of the facility will increase the dangers, the organization said.

Mining of bauxite in the Niyamgiri Hills surrounding the refinery could destroy the way of life of the indigenous Dongria Kondh people, who consider the hills sacred and depend on them for water, food, livelihoods and cultural identity, the release said.

Amnesty International said it would release a report, "Don't Mine Us out of Existence: Bauxite Mine and Refinery Devastate Lives in India," at a press conference in India Tuesday.

© 2010 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.