Planning for artisanal and small-scale mining during EIA: Exploring the potential

Abstract

Available online xxx Keywords:Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Mine closure South Africa A B S T R A C TThis review considers the potential to better plan for artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) during the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) phase of new major mine developments. We contrast and contextualise the parallel development of comprehensive mine closure regulation in South Africa with the resultant lack of progress in actual rehabilitation of its large and growing negative mining legacy. We discuss socio-economic conditions around the mine and the current tendency/flaw in governance that ignores the extensive ASM activities that exist. The ramifications of omitting the known large cumulative impact of ASM compromises efforts to undertake large-scale mine closure effectively both in theory and practice. This leaves some large-scale mine rehabilitation and closure plans unachievable due to cessation attracting ASM activity, consequently 're-opening' the mine. We discuss the EIA process as an existing legal mechanism to generate wider consultation for post-mine ASM activity options, and to formally recognise and incorporate ASM as a known impact to plan for. Governance obligations for mining companies and policymakers should directly cater for ASM, with the focus directed towards mitigating negative consequences and maximising local socio-economic development benefits that the sector can create, managed through EIA processes.

Complexities with extractive industries regulation on the African continent: What has ‘best practice’ legislation delivered in South Africa?

“…Financial provisioning for all mine closure planning and management activity is important and as indicated before the mining company is expected implement and hence to fund the bulk of actions directly (ICMM, 2005;Sassoon, 2009;Sánchez et al, 2014;McHenry et al, 2015;Morrison-Saunders et al, 2015). A key principle is to provide for contingency funding for management and rehabilitation in the event of premature closure or unplanned abandonment of the mine (Sassoon, 2009).…”

“…Miller, 2005;Sassoon, 2009;Hall and Hall, 2015), but use of centralised funds (such as the Mining Rehabilitation Fund in Western Australia -Gorey et al, 2014; that receive contributions from all active mining operations within a given jurisdiction have emerged in recent years as an innovative approach (Hall and Hall, 2015). One advantage of the latter approach is the ability put in place a financial mechanism that can generate funds to pay for the rehabilitation of legacy abandoned mine-sites (Gorey et al, 2016), something we consider to represent a best practice principle for mine closure planning (Morrison-Saunders et al, 2015).…”

“…Audits are now more stringently regulated, along with specific outcomes for the audits being required. These changes are reflected in GNR 982.36 With regards to the challenge of managing small scale and artisanal mining, which might eventuate at a mine site following formal closure by the original large-scale miner, it has recently been suggested that EIA may be an appropriate mechanism for anticipating the effects of this activity and for putting in place initial management frameworks (Morrison-Saunders et al, 2015).As discussed above, the recent shift to the NEMA regime has heralded the need for EIAs to be conducted for mine closure. It would be expected that the issue of small scale and artisanal miners are addressed when these EIAs are conducted.…”

“…As mineral commodity prices can be volatile, mining companies, governments, and local communities are vulnerable to unexpected/unplanned mine closure. Therefore, legislation should ideally incorporate mine closure measures into business feasibility studies at the design stage that demonstrate adequacy of financial resources to meet closure requirements (International Council on Mining & Metals (ICMM), 2005;Sassoon, 2009;McHenry et al, 2015;Morrison-Saunders et al, 2015;. Within this context, the principal aim of this paper is to understand the complexity of legislative provisions for mine site rehabilitation and closure in a single jurisdiction using South Africa as the case study example.…”

Análisis espacial del riesgo para la salud por exposición a metales pesados en el campo minero Ponce Enríquez, Ecuador

“…proviene del cerro Bella Rica y llega al Río Siete por las descargas de las plantas de lixiviación de oro. En consecuencia, el agua superficial, los suelos y los sedimentos presentan altas concentraciones de As, Cu, Hg, Cd, Pb y Zn [24]- [26] y en ciertas zonas la macro fauna ha sido erradicada [27].…”