Mining for Closure: Policies, practises and guidelines for sustainable mining and closure of mines

In order to clarify what is meant by policy instru- ments in this regard, excerpts are supplied in Box 1 after Lindhqvist (2000, p. 41) who divides policy instruments into three different groups. In addition to the above, prevailing social norms or imperatives also contribute to the achievement of policy related goals. Such norms describe the overall values a society has or the way a society usu- ally acts. Individuals or groups in the society are expected to behave according to the prevailing im- peratives (DiMaggio and Powell, 1983:152). Social norms can be described as a condition rather than a policy instrument in this context but it is held that policy interventions can influence norms and vice versa. Thus, within this document it is sought to aid the development of inter alia : legaland/orregulatoryframeworksforkeymin- ing actors (coercive regulatory instruments); utilitarian measures designed to provide mate- rial incentives for improved performance; measures intended to supply or enhance ca- pacity within the mining sector and the regu- latory frameworks that enfold it; manners in which the norms (accepted and anticipated behaviours) of industrial, regulato- ry and social actors can be influenced in order to promote improved mining performance. The brief work agenda presented in this docu- ment is principally drawn from the Desk Study (Peck, 2004) and from the Tisza Rapid assessment (Burnod-Requia, 2004). It is intended that this doc- ument provide a basis – or direction – for action among regional decision-makers, policy makers, and leading industrial actors in four key areas. Action area 1: risk reduction at abandoned or or- phaned sites – actions among regional actors that can facilitate the reduction of the very significant risks associated with non-operational, abandoned and/or orphaned sites where large quantities of physically and chemically unstable, and/or poorly contained mine wastes are stored. In particular the most significant risks are related to the mass re- lease of tailings wastes to waterways and the ongo- ing generation of acidic, metals bearing effluents from such sites affecting both surface waters and groundwater. • • • •

1.5

an agenda for this document

At the outset it is reiterated that a fundamental point of departure for this document is the view that ongoing mining activities are vital to sustain- able development and environmental protection in the SEE/TRB in general. This is a view shared in varying degrees by development agencies such as the World Bank Group (Onorato et al. , 1997; Strongman, 2000) and federations of environmen- tal groups such as the European Environmental Bureau (European Environmental Bureau, 2000). As such, a simplistic statement might be that this document seeks to fill an important gap as an apo- litical “back to mining” guide . Further, this document will seek to address key need areas to support the “next steps forward” at both local (national) scale and in a transboundary and regional perspective that were presented with- in the Desk-assessment study for the Environment and Security Initiative Project generated in 2004 (Peck, 2004) and some of the key items within the Rapid Assessment report (Burnod-Requia, 2004). It must seek to provide information and guidance for regional decision makers on how they can move policy instruments (measures) forward in the key influential areas listed in the previous section. The first group are so-called regulative or coer- cive instruments . Here, a policy goal is achieved through a legislative framework set by government. Such frameworks specify what various actors are allowed to do or not to do. Further, they specify how certain activities should be conducted. A second group called economic or utilitarian instruments intend to have a steering effect to- wards a planned goal. Through giving incentives (both in financial or non-financial terms) aiming at certain activities it becomes advantageous to adopt certain (desirable) behaviour. The third group are so-called informative instru- ments . The provision of information through awareness raising campaigns or education aims to combat lacks of information and thus enable peo- ple to act in a certain (more rational) manners. Box 1 Policy Instruments

Action area 2: risk reduction at operational sites – actions that can facilitate the reduction of the very

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MINING FOR CLOSURE