Publication Name

MINING FOR CLOSURE

Welcomes and endorses the report “Mining for Clo-

sure: policies, practices and guidelines for sustainable

mining and closure of mines in South Eastern Europe

and the Tisza River Basin” as a guide and checklist for

reducing and mitigating the environmental, health

and security risks from mining practices,

Welcomes and endorses the outcome of the discus-

sions on a priority programme for assessing and ad-

dressing environmental, health and security risks in

South Eastern Europe and the Tisza River Basin, in

particular;

the need for Governments, in coordination and sup-

ported by the European Commission, the Environ-

ment and Security Initiative, and other stakeholders

concerned to establish and take action on a selected

number of priority mining hot spots in South East-

ern Europe and the Tisza River Basin,

the need for governments, supported by the Envi-

ronment and Security initiative and other potential

partners, including the European Union, in address-

ing mining to focus on:

improvement of the desk study by incorporat-

ing local information,

capacity building for national agencies in as-

sessment, permitting and enforcement,

clean-up projects that involve community de-

velopment outcomes,

strengthen existing and establish additional

transboundary networks for emergency pre-

paredness,

investigation and testing out of innovative ap-

proaches to mining legacy issues,

improved mechanisms for sharing informa-

tion and experience in the region, with special

attention to the local communities.

Encourages the involved governments to review

minerals investment regulations and environmental

control procedures so as to encourage best practice

mining operations, and cost-effective clean up of hot

spots and orphaned sites.

Recommends further that the “Mining for Closure”

guide and checklist, as well as a shorter popular ver-

sion in the languages of the region, be published

and distributed widely, for use by policy makers and

other stakeholders alike,

Requests Governments, the UNEP-UNDP-OSCE-

NATO Environment and Security Initiative, the

European Commission, relevant civil society or-

ganizations and the private sector, to intensify and

strengthen their collaboration and support to poli-

cies, programmes and projects for reducing and

preventing environmental, health, social, cultural,

economic and security risks frommining operations

and legacies in South Eastern Europe and the Tisza

River Basin,

Further proposals that consultations take place be-

tween interested governments and the international

partners, including EC, to select and address a limit-

ed number of hot spots, as pilot projects for improv-

ing the social, environmental and trans-boundary

aspects of mining practices.

Requests Governments and the private sector to

ensure public participation in decision-making and

access to information, in particular of communities,

civil society organizations and the general public

concerned, and to recognize the rights of communi-

ties to maintain community stability, cultural values

and traditions, and obtain material and social ben-

efits from the mining development,

Expresses its gratitude and appreciation to the Ministry of

the Environment and Water Management from Romania

for hosting the Conference on “Reducing Environment

and Security Risks from Mining in South Eastern Europe

and the Tisza River Basin”.

Done at Cluj-Napoca, Romania, on 13 May 2005.

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