-softening seen on mining notice
President Bharrat Jagdeo and miners are set for a key meeting today on tough new forest protection regulations and the committee which was set up to address the matter has softened it stance on the controversial notice requirement particularly for pork-knockers but key grouses remain.
All persons who intend to commence mining operations on or after October 1 this year are obliged to furnish six months’ notice of intended prospecting or mining operations and the location of specified machinery and/or dredge.
This is the recommendation coming out of the Special Land Use Committee (SLUC) set up by President Jagdeo to look into mining issues. It is subject to the approval of the President and he will likely communicate this to miners at a meeting at the International Conference Centre today. The government proposal that requires miners to give six months notice before mining can commence has had the sector up in arms in opposition with the administration repeatedly stating that mining will be allowed to continue. Miners, however, believe otherwise and say that such a regulation will strangle and eventually shut down the industry they depend on for their livelihood.
Stabroek News has obtained a copy of the draft report of the SLUC and while in theory approval to begin mining can be granted in less than six months, the process can also go the entire length of time. However, it should not take longer than six months. There are some exemptions from the notice requirement and these include pork-knocker/person working back sands/a person using a “pump and small sluice” and who would not affect more than 1.25 acres over a period of six months and is not affecting forestry stakeholders.
Several recommendations have been made including some that will take effect immediately.
These include:
“Miners for all scales of operation must give notice of current operations and this includes owners, lessees and tributors”. The notice will take immediate effect and shall be required for a six-month period. Certain negotiations between miner and forester must occur during this period. All persons who intend to commence mining operations and simultaneously conduct prospecting operations before October 1 shall give notice of intended prospecting or mining operations and the location of specified machinery and/or dredge. Mining may continue during this period.
By April 1, all persons who have medium scale Prospect-ing Permits on which mining is occurring or has occurred shall take all necessary steps to obtain a mining permit. Mining Permit holders shall post an environmental bond and claim licence holders and holders of unverified claims shall post a reclamation bond following the procedures as required by the GGMC, the report states.
Starting from March 1, all persons who intend to start mining on October 1 or after are required to give six months notice of intended prospecting and or mining operations and the location of specified machinery and/or dredge. In this notice an initial starting point and one alternative starting point must be described providing GPS coordinates and depictions on a map for both. The alternative starting point is only required to accommodate unforeseen occurrences such as flooding which would occasion the miner having to remove from the initial starting point, the report explains. “Mining may only commence on or after 1st October, 2010 once notice has been given” the Report stresses. It pointed out that this means that if a miner wishes to commence an operation on October 1, the notice must have been filed by April 1.
According to the Commit-tee, specific notification from now for the commencement of mining on October 1 and after, including location and sequencing will accord with provisions of Mining Regulations. It explained that the Mining Regulations require large and medium scale mineral property holders to submit an Environmental Management Plan (EMP) in which location and sequencing are required to be incorporated. “This plan in effect is advance notice by the miner of the progress of his/her operations”, the report states.
Outside date
It stresses that six months is an “outside date”. The Report states that originally, the miner must give notification to the forester with the period to be used to work out a mutually beneficial approach (using an initial mining block/starting point). “The Committee does not intend or envisage that the entire process between miner and forester will take more than six months”, the report states. It adds that the forester is to respond within a time frame after notice is given. It says that the miner shall submit notices and reports only to the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) and neither forester nor miner ought not to be allowed to delay and stymie the process.
The SLUC sets out a protocol on the operation of the arrangement. According to the report, for areas with no surface right overlap of mining and forestry titled area where operations are already designated, a notice shall be required “but for informational purposes only”. The GGMC shall accordingly annotate this notice and refer it to the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) per the regular schedule. Mining may continue thereafter, the report states.
But for areas with surface right overlap (forestry) joint visits by the surface and (sub) surface rights holders or their representatives shall be made within one month of the filing of the notice with GGMC to assess the area and identify no less that three hectares to establish an initial camping/mining block. Any area of no more that 0.5ha (1 acre) on a mine area may be utilized by the owner or operator for establishment of camp facilities. As proof of an agreement, both the miner and forester shall sign off a duplicate of the notice form. “Mining thereafter may continue or in the meantime mining may continue in an area that is not part of the overlap provided that notice of where both mining and prospecting will occur has been given. The forester may also conduct selective felling once the required permission has been granted”, the report states.
Between the one month period and up to a maximum of six months, the forester shall determine if there is any practicable means of exploiting the timber and describe where they are; the feasibility or practicality of the miner cutting and providing the forester with any marketable forest products for hauling by the forester or contractor and that; he/she has “no interest” on the permit/licence area and must clearly identify where they are located.
According to the report, while a response is awaited from the forester, mining may be done on the initial mining block and only exploration done on other parts of the claim or permit area to determine the progression of operation (sequencing) that the miner will propose to the forester. The forester may also conduct selective felling.
For medium scale (mining permit holders or those who have provided evidence of having applied for a mining permit), the miner shall in accordance with the Mining Regulations and terms of his/her licence or permit, file an EMP with the GGMC which also sets out the sequencing and intensity of mining activities no later than one month after filing of notice and will accept for mutual consideration a forest extraction plan no later than two months after the filing date of the notice.
The GFC shall forward the said Plan from the forester to the GGMC for delivery to the miner. Miner and forester must then meet in a timely manner to discuss both plans and arrive at an agreed approach. No more than six months may be allowed for this process. The parties are expected to in good faith use their best efforts to use their efforts to arrive at an agreed approach. Mining may continue in the initial starting block.
“Beyond the six month period, the surface rights holder shall have no right to interfere with the sub-surface right holder on forest extraction issues which may or do hinder mining on the permit/licence area”, the report states. Any owner or operator of a mine who desires to move from that ‘initial no-objection area’ to another part of a permit area or claim shall do so in accordance with the notice already provided. In the event that they move will be to another permit area or claim, a new notice shall be submitted.
Conflict
In the case of conflict between the contents of the notice of a miner and/or operator of a mining operation and the response of the forester, either party shall submit a note of dispute to the Commissioners of the GGMC and GFC. Officers of the GGMC and GFC shall within two weeks of the date of the said note of dispute collaboratively engage both parties and broker a resolution in fair and transparent terms using the principles of conflict resolution. A resolution must be confirmed in writing by both miner and forester within three working days of the commencement of brokering discussions.
If the forester states in writing that he has no objection to the miner conducting operations in the area then the six months notice goes into default. Should the forester, however, indicate a reversal of decision to the miner, his harvesting plan must be tailored to coordinate with the plan already embarked on by the miner. Also, if the GGMC and GFC determine after considerable review that there should be no obstacle to mining, the six months notice also goes into default. Such a decision would however not be made without both parties having been first heard.
There are exemptions to the requirement to give notice of location of equipment and intent to commence mining operations. “This principle is predicated on the criterion that a person who in the normal course of operations does not affect more than 1.25 acres (0.5ha) over a period of six months is not affecting forestry stakeholders”, the report states. This, according to the report, would include pork-knocker/person working back sands/a person using a “pump and small sluice”; metal detector user who is not using a dredge or an excavator; a small scale Prospecting Permit holder who is prospecting (i.e. boring and washing battel or hand jigging); line cutting for location of claims or planning or conducting prospection and; if outside overlap areas which are already under title.
The report emphasizes that the miner will cut trees in a responsible manner and the forester must have reasonable time to fell and/or collect logs. In the case of a forester who is granted a Timber Sales Agreement (TSA) after the miner has commenced his operations, the forester shall give six months notice to the miner and provide his sequencing plan.
Reclamation
Reclamation shall be done on an on-going basis and in keeping with the EMP. “The sequencing of the plan shall ensure that mined areas must be reclaimed within five years of completion of mining of each specified area named in the sequencing of the plan”, the report states.
The Committee also recommended the establishment of a Mining Reclamation Fund “to deal with the historical damage and damage caused by those who were no longer there”. However there was no consensus on the source of resources for this fund and it remains an “unresolved matter”.
There are several other recommendations including that mining regulations may be subject to minor amendments and the execution of a Memorandum of Understanding between the GGMC and the GFC to solidify the administration of the notice procedure.
The committee has also recommended a public relations campaign with miners commencing with Jagdeo’s discussions with them today. In addition, it has recommended that the GGDMA pursue and aggressive and continuous campaign to aid in the sensitization of mines on the imperatives of following the mining regulations for the environment.
There are other controversial issues including the veto powers of the GFC and the miners’ proposal for a portion of land (5-7%) to be excluded from the forest protection deal with Norway for direct mining. There was no progress on the latter in the SLUC draft report.