Publication Name

MINING FOR CLOSURE

Dissemination of information to the partners and

the public in a timely manner is considered an im-

portant function for multi-stakeholder programs

undertaken in Canada. NOAMI has been active in

its transfer of information and utilises a number of

routes. An abandoned mines Internet site (www.

abandoned-mines.org

) has been established and

is regularly updated with information, reports and

newsletters. The Secretariat issues communication

documents, such as newsletters, on the activities

of the orphaned and abandoned mines initiative.

These newsletters are posted on the website, as

well as electronically distributed to the Secretariat’s

mailing lists.

4.3

This discussion is intended to build upon that pre-

sented in Section 4.1, however the focus in this text

is upon the actual motivation for abandonment

rather than just cessation/closure. The following

quote from Nazari (1999) is provided to set context

for this discussion.

Mine closure is, typically, required at a time when

the operation is no longer economically viable,

when cashflow is often severely restricted or nega-

tive, and when the value of assets is below the ex-

penditures required to achieve the environmental

objective of mine closure. The objective of securing

mine closure funding at an early project develop-

ment and implementation stage is to mitigate

against the risk that an enterprise may either be

unwilling or unable to undertake mine closure

due to lack of funding

A range of reasons for mine abandonment are pre-

sented in literature surrounding the industry (En-

vironmental Protection Agency, 1995b; Mulligan,

1996; Nazari, 1999; Sengupta, 1993; Smith & Un-

derwood, 2000; van Zyl

et al

., 2002b; WOM Geo-

logical Associates, 2000). A number of the mining

related elements that are held to contribute to the

creation of abandoned mines include:

the general absence of mine reclamation poli-

cies and regulations until the latter part of the

twentieth century;

ineffective enforcement of mine reclamation

policies and regulations if, and where in exist-

ence;

the absence of financial security mechanisms

to ensure funds for parties such as government

to conduct remediation in the event a mining

company going bankrupt and being unable to

cover the costs of rehabilitation;

inadequate financial security to address remedi-

ation if, and where such funds were set aside;

unforeseen economic events that caused early

cessation of activities or left companies bank-

rupt, such as a sudden drop in metal prices,

insurmountable difficulties with mining/mill-

ing, and/or infrastructure problems;

past technical practices undertaken such as

the sinking of numerous exploration shafts

and mineral deposit test pits that were never

back-filled prior to the introduction of drilling

equipment for mineral deposit evaluation;

national security issues such as the supply

cut-off for strategic metals in times of conflict

leading to rapid mining activity with scant

consideration of closure requirements or op-

erational longevity;

Loss of mine data including records of under-

ground workings and surface openings due to

natural disaster, regulatory flux, unscheduled

cessation of activities, political disruption and

conflict;

Political unrest, conflict and political instabil-

ity leading to unscheduled cessation of activi-

ties of a number of mines;

Small scale mining conducted by artisanal or

illegal miners, also including the uncontrolled

occupation of mine sites.

Since abandonment today is usually sudden and

unplanned, governments are often left responsi-

ble for mine closure and rehabilitation. Clark

et al

(2000)) stated the following about the costs associ-

ated with abandoned mines:

closure and rehabilitation costs must be directly

or indirectly born by the State. As such the aban-

doned mines represent not only a major liability

for the government but for the affected communi-

ties, adjacent areas and society at large: the lat-

ter must ultimately bear the financial burden of

ensuring appropriate closure.

It is clear that most of the points outlined above

can be planned for, or are preventable in some way.

Indeed there are growing expectations around the

why are mine sites

abandoned?

79. Examples include the Kilembe copper mine in Uganda that

was abandoned in the early eighties due to political unrest and the

Bougainville mine in Papua New Guinea was abandoned in 1989

due to a landowner rebellion (van Zyl

et al

., 2002b).

•