ORIGINAL PAPER
Public participation as an element of mineral deposit safeguarding system – international experiences
1
Mineral and Energy Economy Research Institute, Polish Academy of Sciences
2
University of Belgrade, Faculty of Mining and Geology
3
Montanuniversität Leoben, Chair of Mining Engineering and Mineral Economics
4
Luleå University of Technolgy, Department of Social Sciences
Submission date: 2022-08-05
Final revision date: 2022-10-19
Acceptance date: 2022-11-07
Publication date: 2022-12-19
Corresponding author
Gospodarka Surowcami Mineralnymi – Mineral Resources Management 2022;38(4):5-28
KEYWORDS
community engagementpublic consultationadministrative proceduresmineral deposit safeguardingsocial license to operate
TOPICS
Rational and efficient development and utilization of mineral resourcesEffective mineral deposits exploitation
ABSTRACT
Every social group exhibits a need to make decisions that are binding for all its members and the participation of various interest groups in decision-making today is an integral part of modern political and legal thought as well as administrative processes. Recently, increased community engagement and greater awareness of the society with regard to the possibility of influencing the development on a microregion (commune) scale have also been observed. This often translates into problems in obtaining a social license for a given project, which is particularly visible in mining activities. However, obtaining such a license requires the involvement and awareness of many stakeholder groups on which a project will have a direct impact. It should be ensured that this engagement takes place at a very early stage of a given project. In the case of mining activity, which is possible only after obtaining appropriate licenses (exploration or exploitation), this involvement takes the form of public consultation. This is due to the legal conditions presented in the following article for 3 EU countries (Poland, Austria, Sweden) and Serbia. The analysis showed that participation is mainly at the level of consultation in all countries and is an important element of the environmental impact assessment (EIA) procedure of the mining project, which is an important stage in obtaining a mining (less frequently exploration) license. Public consultations at the stage of spatial planning are also present and have a diverse scope. However, special attention should be paid to these as they are crucial for proper mineral deposit safeguarding. Stakeholders’ awareness of planning decisions taken by local authorities can be crucial for the fast path to obtaining both formal and informal concessions, which takes the form of social license to operate (SLO).
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This article has been supported by the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange under Grant No PPI/APM/2019/1/00079/U/001.
METADATA IN OTHER LANGUAGES:
Polish
Partycypacja społeczna jako element systemu ochrony złóż kopalin – doświadczenia międzynarodowe
zaangażowanie społeczne, konsultacje społeczne, procedury aministracyjne, ochrona złóż kopalin, licencja społeczna
Każda grupa społeczna przejawia potrzebę podejmowania decyzji, które są wiążące dla wszystkich jej członków, a udział różnych grup interesariuszy w podejmowaniu decyzji jest dziś integralną częścią nowoczesnej myśli politycznej i prawnej, jak również procesów administracyjnych. W ostatnim czasie obserwowane jest również zwiększone zaangażowanie społeczne i większa świadomość społeczeństwa co do możliwości wpływania na rozwój w skali mikroregionu (gminy). Niejednokrotnie przekłada się to na problemy w uzyskaniu społecznej licencji na dany projekt, co jest szczególnie widoczne w działalności górniczej. Uzyskanie takiej licencji wymaga zaangażowania oraz świadomości wielu grup interesariuszy, na których dany projekt będzie bezpośrednio oddziaływał. Należy zadbać, aby to zaangażowanie odbyło się już na bardzo wczesnym etapie danego projektu. W przypadku działalności górniczej, która możliwa jest tylko po uzyskaniu właściwych koncesji (poszukiwawczych lub wydobywczych), to zaangażowanie przybiera formę konsultacji społecznych. Wynika to z uwarunkowań prawnych, które w poniższym artykule przedstawione zostały dla trzech krajów UE (Polska, Austria, Szwecja) oraz Serbii. Konsultacje społeczne w analizowanych krajach są ważnym elementem procedury oddziaływania na środowisko projektu górniczego, która z kolei stanowi istotny etap w uzyskaniu koncesji wydobywczej (rzadziej poszukiwawczej). Udział społeczeństwa jest zapewniony również na etapie planowania przestrzennego. Na te ostatnie należy zwrócić szczególną uwagę, gdyż one są kluczowe dla właściwej ochrony złóż kopalin. Świadomość interesariuszy co do podejmowanych przez władze lokalne decyzji planistycznych może być kluczowa dla szybkiej ścieżki uzyskania zarówno formalnej, jak i nieformalnej koncesji, która przybiera formę społecznej akceptacji.
REFERENCES (74)
1.
Andrews et al. 2017 – Andrews, T., Elizalde, B., Le Billon, P., Hoon Oh, Ch., Reyes, D. and Thomson, I. 2017. The Rise in Conflict Associated with Mining Operations: What Lies Beneath? Canadian International Resources and Development Institute. [Online] https://cirdi.ca/wp-content/up... [Accessed: 2022-06-29].
2.
Badera, J. 2014. Problems of the social non-acceptance of mining projects with particular emphasis on the European Union – a literature review. Environmental and Socio-economic Studies 2(1), pp. 27–34, DOI: 10.1515/environ-2015-0029.
3.
Bammer, G. 2019. Key issues in co-creation with stakeholders when research problems are complex. Evidence and Policy 15(3), pp. 423–435, DOI: 10.1332/174426419X15532579188099.
4.
Brereton, D. and Forbes, P. 2004. Monitoring the impact of mining on local communities: a Hunter Valley case study. [In:] Proceedings of the Minerals Council of Australia Inaugural Sustainable Development Conference. Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining, Melbourne.
5.
BVG 2022. Bundesrecht konsolidiert: Gesamte Rechtsvorschrift für Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz. Bundesrecht konsolidiert. [Online] https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/Gelt... [Accessed: 2022-06-31].
6.
Cassard, D. and 39 other authors. 2013. The ProMine Project (together with Europe-wide mineral deposits database). [Online] https://promine.gtk.fi/ [Accessed: 2022-06-10].
7.
Czekiel-Świtalska, E. 2012. Public consultation in local planning – selected issues (Konsultacje społeczne w planowaniu miejscowym – wybrane zagadnienia). Przestrzeń i Forma 17, pp. 325–338 (in Polish).
8.
Eerola, T.T. 2017. Corporate social responsibility in mineral exploration – The importance of communication and stakeholder engagement in earning and maintaining the social license to operate. GTK Report of Investigation 233.
9.
EIA Directive 85/337/EEC of 27 June 1985 on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment.
10.
Environmental Code 1998. The Swedish Environmental Code. 1998:808. [Online] https://www.government.se/49b7... [Accessed: 2022-07-22].
11.
European Commission 2020. Study on the EU’s List of Critical Raw Materials – Final Report; European Commission: Brussels, Belgium, 2020.
12.
Fernandes-Jesus et al. 2019 – Fernandes-Jesus, M., Seixas, E. C., and Carvalho, A. 2019. Para além dos obstáculos: experiências de consultas públicas e a possibilidade de ética e relevância na participação. Comunicação E Sociedade 36, pp. 57–80, DOI: 10.17231/comsoc.36(2019).2345.
13.
Franks et al. 2014 – Franks, D., Davis, R., Bebbington, A.J., Ali, S.H., Kemp, D. and Scurrah, M. 2014. Conflict translates environmental and social risk into business costs. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. 111, pp. 7576–7581, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1405135111.
14.
Geologische Bundesanstalt 2012. Der österreichische Rohstoffplan. – Archiv f. Lagerstättenforsch 26. Vienna: Verlag Geol. B.-A.
15.
Gugerell et al. 2019 – Gugerell, K., Tost, M., Wertichova, B., Berne, S., Marasmi, C., Forsgren, A. and Murguía, D. 2019. Deliverable 4.4 Civil society`s influence on land use practise across Europe. MinLand Project.
16.
Guillaume Ragonnaud, G. and Szczepanski M. 2022. Russia’s war on Ukraine: Implications for EU commodity imports from Russia. European Parliamentary Research Service. European Parliament.
17.
Hedlund, A. and Kjellander, C. 2007. MKB: Introduktion till miljökonsekvensbeskriving (Introduction to describing environmental impacts). Studentlitteratur.
18.
Hurst, B. and Johnston, K.A. 2021. The social imperative in public relations: Utilities of social impact, social license and engagement. Public Relations Review 47(2), DOI: 10.1016/j.pubrev.2021.102039.
19.
IAPP2 2016. International Association for Public Participation Australasia (2016). Quality Assurance Standard for Community and Stakeholder Engagement. Victoria, Australia.
20.
IAPP2 2018. International Association for Public Participation (IAP2). 2018. IAP2’s public participation spectrum. [Online] https://iap2.org.au/wp-content... [Accessed: 2022-07-20].
21.
Jagers et al. 2018 – Jagers, S., Matti, S., Poelzer, G., Yu, S. 2018. The impact of local participation on community support for natural resource management: The case of mining in Northern Canada and Northern Sweden. Arctic Review on Law and Politics 9, pp. 124–147, DOI: 10.23865/arctic.v9.730.
22.
Jobert et al. 2007 – Jobert, A., Laborgne P. and Mimler, S. 2007. Local acceptance of wind energy: factors of success identified in French and German case studies. Energy Policy 35(5), pp. 2751–2760, DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2006.12.005.
23.
Kaehne, A. and Taylor, H. 2016. Do public consultations work? The case of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Bill. Public Policy and Administration 31(1), pp. 80–99, DOI: 10.1177/0952076715595676.
24.
Karlsen, J.T. 2008. Forming Relationships with Stakeholders in Engineering Projects. European Journal of Industrial Engineering 2(1), pp. 35-49, DOI: 10.1504/EJIE.2008.016328.
25.
Kivinen et al. 2020 – Kivinen, S., Kotilainen, J. and Kumpula, T. 2020. Mining conflicts in the European Union: environmental and political perspectives. Fennia – International Journal of Geography 198(1–2), pp. 163–179, DOI: 10.11143/fennia.87223.
26.
Komnitsas, K. 2020. Social License to Operate in Mining: Present Views and Future Trends. Resources 9(79), pp. 1–15. DOI: 10.3390/resources9060079.
27.
Kot-Niewiadomska, A. 2022. The Role of Mineral Raw Materials Education in a Social License to Operate – A Case of Poland. Resources 11(5), DOI: 10.3390/resources11050039.
28.
KPMG 2021a. Global Mining Risk Report. 2021. [Online] https://assets.kpmg/content/da... [Accessed: 2022-07-20].
29.
Lauri et al. 2018 – Lauri, L.S., Eilu, P., Brown, T., Gunn, G., Kalvig, P. and Sievers, H. 2018. Identification and quantification of primary CRM resources in Europe. [Online] http://scrreen.eu/wp-content/u... [Accessed: 2022-06-10].
30.
Lesser et al. 2020 – Lesser, P., Gugerell, K., Poelzer, G., Poelzer, H. and Tost, M. 2020. European mining and the social license to operate. The Extractive Industries and Society 8(2), DOI: 10.1016/j.exis.2020.07.021.
31.
MA 1991. The Minerals Act (1991:45). [Online] https://www.sgu.se/en/mining-i... [Accessed: 2022-07-20].
32.
McMahon, G. 1997. Mining and the Community: results of the Quito Conference. Washington: World Bank.
33.
Minland 2019a. Deliverable for Task 4.2: Land Use Policies and Valuation of Land. [Online] https://www.minland.eu/wp-cont... [Accessed: 2022-07-20].
34.
Minland 2019b. Deliverable for Task 6.2: Final Manual for Good Practice Guidance. [Online] https://www.minland.eu/wp-cont... [Accessed: 2022-10-15].
35.
MinPol and partners 2017. Legal framework for mineral extraction and permitting procedures for exploration and exploitation in the EU, Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (European Commission), DOI: 10.2873/920344.
36.
MinRoG 1999. Bundesrecht konsolidiert: Gesamte Rechtsvorschrift für Mineralrohstoffgesetz (BGBl. I Nr. 38/1999). [Online] https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/Gelt... [Accessed: 2022-07-31].
37.
MO 1992. The Minerals Ordinance (1992:285). [Online] https://www.sgu.se/en/mining-i... [Accessed: 2022-07-20].
38.
Moffat, K. and Zhang, A. 2014. The paths to social licence to operate: An integrative model explaining community acceptance of mining. Resources Policy 39, pp. 61–70, DOI: 10.1016/j.resourpol.2013.11.003.
39.
Moffat et al. 2016 – Moffat, K., Lacey J., Zhang A. and Leipold S. 2016. The social licence to operate: a critical review. Forestry 89, pp. 477–488, DOI: 10.1093/forestry/cpv044.
40.
Nabatchi, T. 2012. Putting the public back in public values research: Designing participation to identify and respond to values. Public Administration Review 72(5), pp. 699–708, DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-6210.2012.02544.x.
41.
Nenasheva et al. 2015 – Nenasheva, M., Bickford, S., Lesser, P., Koivurova, T. and Kankaanpää, P. 2015. Legal tools of public participation in the Environmental Impact Assessment process and their application in the countries of the Barents Euro-Arctic Region. Peoples, Economics and Politics 1(3), pp. 13–35.
42.
Nieć, M. and Radwanek-Bąk, B. 2010 – Recent and future utilisation of mineral deposits in Poland and threats to security of mineral raw material supply. [In:] Mineral resources and mine development. Aachen International Mining Symposia 9, pp. 137–147. Aachen: VGE Verlag.
43.
Owen, J.R. and Kemp, D. 2013. Social licence and mining: a critical perspective. Resources Policy 38(1), pp. 29–35, DOI: 10.1016/j.resourpol.2012.06.016.
44.
Parsons et al. 2014 – Parsons, R., Lacey, J. and Moffat, K., 2014. Maintaining legitimacy of a contested practice: How the minerals industry understands its “social licence to operate. Resources Policy 41, pp. 83–90. DOI: 10.1016/j.resourpol.2014.04.002.
45.
Patyra, S. 2014. Social consultations in the process of preparing the government’s bills – an outline of the problem (Konsultacje społeczne w procesie przygotowywania rządowych projektów ustaw – zarys problemu). Studia Iuridica Lublinensia 22, pp. 497–510 (in Polish).
46.
Pedro et al. 2017 – Pedro, A., Ayuk, E.T., Bodouroglou, C., Milligan, B., Ekins, P. and Oberle, B. 2017. Towards a sustainable development licence to operate for the extractive sector. Mineral Economics 30, pp. 153–165, DOI: 10.1007/s13563-017-0108-9.
47.
Perić, A. and Miljuš, M. 2017. Spatial and urban planning in Serbia: a look through the lens of deliberative approach. SPATIUM 37, pp. 49–57, DOI: 10.2298/SPAT1737049P.
48.
Plank et al. 2016 – Plank, S., Walsh, B. and Behrensa, pp. 2016. The expected impacts of mining: Stakeholder perceptions of a proposed mineral sands mine in rural Australia. Resources Policy 48, pp. 129–136, DOI: 10.1016/j.resourpol.2016.03.005.
49.
Prno, J. and Slocombe, D.S. 2012. Exploring the origins of ‘social license too perate’ in the mining sector: perspectives from governance and sustainability theories. Resource Policy 37, pp. 346–357, DOI: 10.1016/j.resourpol.2012.04.002.
50.
Radwanek-Bąk, B. 2018. Problems of social acceptance of mining activities in EU countries and ways of minimizing them. Biuletyn Geologiczny 472, pp. 185–192, DOI: 10.5604/01.3001.0012.711.
51.
Regulation 2019. Regulation of the Council of Ministers of 10 September 2019 on projects likely to have a significant impact on the environment (Poland).
52.
Romaniuk, R. 2021. Traditions and the future of social consultations in local government units. Journal of Modern Science 47(2), pp. 345–358, DOI: 10.13166/jms/142747.
53.
SBC 2013. Social Licence to Operate Paper. Social-Licence-to-Operate-Paper.pdf. [Online] https://sbc.org.nz/.
54.
SEAD Directive 2001/42/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 June 2001 on the assessment of the effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment.
55.
Senecah, S.L. 2004. The trinity of voice: the role of practical theory in planning and evaluating the effectiveness of environmental participatory processes. [In:] S.P. Depoe, J.W. Delicath and M.F. Elsenbeer (eds.), Communication and public participation in environmental decision making, pp. 13–33. Albany: State University of New York Press.
56.
Sidore, A. 2021. Public consultations: nurturing positive perception and preserving social value in projects and investments. [Online] https://blogs.iadb.org/sosteni....
57.
Sustainet 2018. Factors impacting stakeholder engagement in mining. [Online] https://www.sustainet.com/stak....
58.
Swedish Geological Surveys 2022. Minefacts, [Online] https://www.minefacts.eu/the-p... [Accessed: 2022-06-06].
59.
The Act of 27 March 2003 on spatial planning and development (Journal of Laws 2003 No 80, Item 717) as Amended (Poland).
60.
The Act of 3 October 2008 on Sharing Information about the Environment and its Protection, Public Participation in Environmental Protection and Environmental Impact Assessment (Journal of Laws 2008 No 199, Item 1227) as Amended (Poland).
61.
The Act of 9 June 2011 Geological and Mining Law (Journal of Laws of 2011, No. 163, item 981) as amended (Poland).
62.
Thomson, I. and Boutilier, R.G., 2011. The social license to operate. [In:] Darling, P. (ed.), SME Mining Engineering Handbook, pp. 1779–1796. Littleton.
63.
Tiess, G. 2011. Legal basis of Minerals Policy in Europe. An overview of 40 countries. Springer Verlag.
64.
Tost et al. 2021 – Tost, M., Lesser, P., Poelzer G., Akhouri. U. and Gugerell K. 2021. Social License to Operate Guidelines for Europe. Technical Report. MIREU Project.
65.
TROG 2022. Gesamte Rechtsvorschrift für Raumordnungsgesetz 2022, Tiroler. Landesrecht Tirol. [Online] https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/Gelt... [Accessed: 2022-07-31].
66.
TUP 2005. Landesrecht konsolidiert Tirol: Gesamte Rechtsvorschrift für Umweltprüfungsgesetz. LGBl. Nr. 34/2005. [Online] https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/Gelt... [Accessed: 2022-07-31].
67.
United States Environmental Protection Agency 2017. Public participation guide: Selecting the right level of public participation. Retrieved 13 February, 2017. [Online] https://www.epa.gov/internatio....
68.
UVP-G 2000. Bundesgesetz über die Prüfung der Umweltverträglichkeit. BGBl. Nr. 697/1993. [Online] https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/Gelt... [Accessed: 2022-07-20].
69.
Vanclay, F. 2020. Reflections on social impact assessment in the 21st century. Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal 38(2), pp. 126–131, DOI: 10.1080/14615517.2019.1685807.
70.
Walker et al. 2010 – Walker, G., Devine-Wright, P., Hunter, S., High, H., Evans, B. 2010. Trust and community: exploring the meanings, contexts and dynamics of community renewable Energy. Energy Policy 38(6), pp. 2655–2663, DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2009.05.055.
71.
Walsh et al. 2017 – Walsh, B., Plank, S., Behrens, P. 2017. The effect of community consultation on perceptions of a proposed mine: A case study from southeast Australia. Resources Policy 5, pp. 163–171, DOI: 10.1016/j.resourpol.2016.12.006.
72.
Weiß et al. 2020 – Weiß, M., Stefan Giljum, S. and Luckeneder, S. 2020. Mining and social conflict in Latin America. Which factors drive conflict escalation? [Online] https://www.fineprint.global/w... [Accessed: 2022-07-20].
73.
World Bank 2005. Extractive Industries and Sustainable Development. An Evaluation of World Bank Group Experience. [Online] https://documents1.worldbank.o....
74.
Woźniczko, J. 2019. Public consultations as a tool of public participation Thematic studies OT-666 (Konsultacje społeczne jako narzędzie partycypacji publicznej Opracowania tematyczne OT-666). Warszawa (in Polish).
| eISSN: | 2299-2324 |
| ISSN: | 0860-0953 |
We process personal data collected when visiting the website. The function of obtaining information about users and their behavior is carried out by voluntarily entered information in forms and saving cookies in end devices. Data, including cookies, are used to provide services, improve the user experience and to analyze the traffic in accordance with the Privacy policy. Data are also collected and processed by Google Analytics tool (more).
You can change cookies settings in your browser. Restricted use of cookies in the browser configuration may affect some functionalities of the website.
You can change cookies settings in your browser. Restricted use of cookies in the browser configuration may affect some functionalities of the website.
