Publication Name

MINING FOR CLOSURE

Having briefly addressed the multiple reasons for

cessation of mining activities and having portrayed

a number of courses of action that may eventuate,

further discussion is relevant regarding orphaned

sites. That is, sites with no identifiable owner. This

topic is addressed in the following section. More

rationalization of why mine sites are abandoned is

provided in Section 4.3.

4.2

The whole topic of environmentally and socially re-

sponsible mining is often a forward-looking debate

focused upon present or future mines. However,

we must nevertheless apply focus to the legacies

of the past in the form of abandoned and orphan

sites of minerals related activity. This is where the

problem is at its most intractable, where the need

for new action is greatest, and where the challenges

of innovation and new action frameworks still need

to be met (Balkau, 2005b).

Among the environmental problems still to be con-

fronted by the mining industry, that of abandoned

mine sites, has been particularly slow to be tackled.

Historically, it was common practice to ‘abandon’ a

mine site when mineral extraction was completed.

The land was left unvegetated and exposed, while

waste materials were left in piles or haphazardly

dumped into mine cavities or pits. There was lit-

tle concern for the environment and no thought of

how mining might adversely affect the surround-

ing ecosystem in coming years (van Zyl, Sassoon,

Fleury, & Kyeyune, 2002b).

In many such cases, there is no clearly assigned

(or assumed) responsible party or the legal, finan-

cial and technical instruments being used, and

the approaches to social issues, are inappropriate

for such sites and their neighbouring communi-

ties (Balkau, 2005a; Post Mining Alliance, 2005).

Further, factors such as the potential costs of wide

scale rehabilitation and the absence of criteria

and standards for rehabilitation have delayed ac-

tion by both the industry and by public authorities

(Balkau, 2005a). Indeed, while there have been

calls of varying intensity for action from interna-

tional actors (European Environmental Bureau,

2000; Miller, 1998, 2005; Onorato

et al

., 1997;

Strongman, 2000) there have been few attempts

by international bodies thus far to examine the is-

sue and provide concrete guidance to national in-

stitutions. Such guidance is required.

At issue is the development of an effective and ef-

ficient approach to the funding of closure that ena-

bles mine rehabilitation and other environmental

objectives to be achieved and also facilitates and

encourages industry to comply with the require-

ments of Government and the community (ANZ-

MEC MCA, 2000, p. v)

One place to commence is by examining how wide-

spread the problem really is. A fact is clear – there

are hundreds of thousands of orphaned and aban-

doned mines worldwide (Post Mining Alliance,

2005; U.S. Department of Interior, 1998; van Zyl

., 2002b). Attempts at quantifying the number of

abandoned sites yield astoundingly high figures.

In the US alone around over 400 000 sites on

Federal Land alone are reported (U.S. Department

of Interior, 1998; UNEP, 2001). Balkau (2005a;

2005b) indicates that some 500 000 sites are prob-

able with at least 100 000 demanding some ac-

tion. The seriousness of the challenges in the US

is highlighted in the quote below:

Over 400,000 abandoned mines are found on

Federal lands. In addition, many more are ad-

jacent to Federal lands or are affecting water

quality and biological resources under Federal

stewardship. Defunct mines have contaminated

public and private lands with more than 50 bil-

lion tons of untreated mine waste. In the Appa-

lachian coal region, acid mine drainage has de-

graded more than 8,000 miles of streams and has

left some aquatic habitats virtually lifeless. The

cleanup and remediation of abandoned mine

sites will require a huge investment of taxpayers’

dollars. In West Virginia alone, the coal industry

is spending approximately $1 million each day to

treat acid mine drainage (U.S. Department of

Interior, 1998).

Much closer (or indeed geographically a part of)

to the SEE/TRB region, Slovakia, registered more

than 17 000 old mining sites, while Hungary has

reported some 6 000. In most countries however,

data are scarce and we are forced to rely on anecdo-

tal evidence. Further, the social and economic im-

pacts of these sites have never been systematically

evaluated. We can however, safely suppose they are

substantial (Balkau, 2005a).

a special problem

with “orphaned

sites”