Gao Qing
I. Introduction
Canada's rich natural resources are of great significance to its economic development. Canada is particularly rich in mineral resources, containing almost all the mineral resources necessary for the development of modern economy, and is a major producer of nickel, zinc and asbestos in the world. Although the world economy has declined in recent years, Canada continues to maintain its leading position in the world in the production and export of mineral products. According to the statistics in 2, the output of potash and uranium in Canada ranks first in the world; The output of nickel and asbestos ranks second in the world; The output of titanium, zinc, cadmium, gypsum and platinum ranks third in the world. In 21, the output value of metals and mineral products reached 19.34 billion. In recent years, Canada's Earth Shield area, once considered a wasteland, has now become a cornucopia, and many major minerals have been found here. Such as Voisey's Bay mining area, Cheviot coal mine, Lac des lLes platinum mine, copper and gold mines discovered in Sudbury basin, diamond mines discovered in Ekati, Diavik and Snape Lake, etc.
due to its abundant mineral resources, the mining development in Canada occupies an important position in social and economic development. Statistics show that the total output value of metals and minerals in 21 was 35.8 billion yuan, accounting for 3.73% of Canada's gross national product, and the total export value reached 47.4 billion yuan, accounting for 12.8% of Canada's total export value that year. The total number of mining institutions in that year was 98, with 375,533 people directly employed.
in the past few decades, the mining industry in Canada has been showing a good development momentum. With the large-scale exploration and development, serious environmental problems began to surface. In the prospecting stage, cutting down trees, building large-scale buildings and building roads are one of the most common large-scale development activities. The use of fuel often leads to the impact on the local environment. Human activities, such as the use of trucks and planes, cause serious noise, but also lead to negative effects on the ecological environment. The use of a large amount of lubricating oil in exploration activities will also cause environmental damage to varying degrees. If the above activities take place around rivers and lakes, the silt deposited by drilling will endanger the water environment.
mineral exploitation is generally divided into open pit and underground. The environmental damage caused by open-pit mining is that the ecological environment around the mining area is completely destroyed during the mining process; Secondly, the problem of acid discharge has a great influence on the groundwater level and hydrogeology in the area. In Canada, mining development mainly adopts underground mining. In fact, the impact of underground mining on the environment is far less than that of open-pit mining, but it will still affect the local groundwater level and hydrogeology. At the same time, grinding needs a lot of energy, mining leads to a lot of land waste, and the accumulation of tailings, smelting, ore roasting and acid discharge will all lead to serious environmental problems.
sudbury is a typical mining city. Mining and smelting activities in the past 1 years have caused serious pollution in this area. In 197s, 19,5 hectares of land around sudbury completely lost vegetation, and 64,3 hectares of land were scattered with sparse birch and hay. Sudbury has almost become a barren "moon". Looking at the city from a distance, its black spots are faintly visible.
in order to ensure the sustainable development of mining cities, the Canadian government has formulated a series of policies. No matter any department or field, all problems related to mine environment must be taken into consideration first.
2. The state, local governments and some organizations are committed to mine environmental protection.
At present, the central government and local governments at all levels have formulated a series of laws and regulations. After more than 3 years of concerted efforts, many related policies have been introduced one after another. For example, the laws and regulations formulated by the central government include:
The discharge standard of liquid metal ore promulgated and implemented in p>1977. The standard strictly stipulates the emission standards of a series of toxic substances in newly opened and expanded mining areas.
guidelines for liquid discharge control in existing mines.
The Fisheries Law, which aims to protect fish and their living waters, also has two chapters related to mining.
mining law. This is a very important bill promulgated by the Northern Ministry of Mining and Development. The seventh part of the bill specifies the specific requirements of mining environmental protection in detail.
All mining-related organizations, such as Canadian Mining Association, Canadian Safety Association and Canadian Environment Cabinet, have formulated environmental protection laws and regulations to ensure the smooth progress of the work. Among them, the Canadian Mining Association is one of the most representative organizations. The member companies of the Canadian Mining Association are committed to sustainable development, which is embodied in promoting human health, improving the natural environment and economic prosperity. In all authorities, except in strict accordance with legal requirements, all members will actively apply technical and economic means to achieve environmental protection in all processes of exploration, mining, processing and manufacturing and pit closure.
in order to ensure that mining companies strictly implement environmental standards, the Canadian government first adopted an environmental management system under the guidelines of ISO141, requiring mining companies to solve their environmental problems first. These include management guidelines, environmental policy review and personnel training. Reclamation and reconstruction are carried out simultaneously to ensure that the cost of the final cleaning process is reduced.
in addition to the above practices, many provinces have also formulated their own guidelines for sewage discharge. Of course, these guidelines must be based on the framework of relevant policies formulated by the central government, or more stringent and specific than the laws and regulations of the central government.
With the strong advantages of land and water transportation, Ontario has become an important mining province in Canada. Many industries in Canada are concentrated in the Great Lakes region. Kolben City is located in Niagara Falls, and has been refining nickel since 1918. Long-term refining has released a lot of pollutants, and serious pollution problems have become increasingly apparent, resulting in serious damage to the local soil. This has not only aroused the concern of the local government, but also aroused the anxiety of local residents. In this case, the local government has formulated and promulgated a series of relevant laws and regulations, and stipulated various environmental protection standards in detail. For example, the Canadian Environmental Quality Guidelines issued by the Canadian Environment Committee in 1999 clearly stipulated the air quality, drinking water standards and water quality standards for entertainment areas; The draft water quality guideline aims at protecting aquatic organisms and agricultural aquatic products; The sediment quality guidelines also raise the issue of protecting aquatic life. In addition, there are soil quality guidelines aimed at protecting the environment and human health, and Canadian pulp discharge regulations for protecting wildlife in aquatic areas.
in July p>1994, the Ministry of energy and environmental protection promulgated the water management policy, guidelines and water-saving quality objectives, which specified the quality of surface water and groundwater in detail. In addition, Ontario drinking water standards and water well and groundwater supply standards have been introduced.
Mining Law is a key bill closely related to mining environmental protection. This was formulated by the Northern Mining and Development Department of Ontario and has been revised for more than 2 times. The purpose of the bill is to encourage prospecting and exploration to promote the development and reclamation of mining resources and minimize the impact of these activities on public health and the environment. Chapter 7 of the Mining Law, published in 1991 and revised on June 3, 2, mainly deals with mining and mine reclamation in Ontario. Chapter 7 clearly points out:
All owners of old mines and new mines must submit reclamation plans, which must specify financial guarantee, methods, plans and expenses adopted during reclamation. All reclamation plans must be published by the Environmental Registration Office of the Ministry of the Environment according to the Environmental Act.
Audit the reclamation plan to ensure that the required contents can be achieved.
If all the requirements can be met, the Mine Reclamation Association will issue and approve the reclamation plan within 45 days.
In order to achieve the goal of sustainable development, the central government of Canada promulgated the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act on January 19th, 1995. At the same time, Ontario has also formulated a series of supplementary provisions according to its own special conditions to supplement the laws and regulations of the central government, so as to make it more suitable for the specific local situation and cover more specific situations.
in addition to the above laws and regulations, some non-governmental organizations have also formulated procedures such as "environmental impact assessment" to help customers and assessors plan, implement and interpret environmental assessment results.
Third, laws and regulations are formulated comprehensively, and there are chapters to be found in each stage.
Environmental laws, regulations and guidelines cover almost all relevant fields and are very detailed and specific. For example:
Canadian environmental quality guidelines
Document No.769 of Canadian Safety Association
Environmental governance assessment
Water quality management
Ontario drinking water standards
Well and groundwater supply in Ontario
Sampling and analysis methods in polluted areas in Ontario
Environmental Protection Law
Ontario Water Resources Law
Application of environmental guidelines in polluted areas
.
from the beginning of mining to the final reclamation, there are corresponding laws, regulations and guidelines. For example, before mining, mining companies must first conduct environmental assessments. The whole evaluation process involves many aspects, such as project needs, resource management, land claim, air quality, tailings, ores, water source management, environmental pollution, freshwater fish and its habitat, marine environment, marine mammals, land environment and wildlife, birds, land use and historical resources in indigenous settlements, employment and industry, family and community life, public services and environmental management, sustainable development and so on.
after the environmental assessment, the mining company will extract a certain proportion of funds according to the assessment results for future land reclamation. This kind of financial guarantee can be cash, letter of credit issued by designated banks, faithful insurance issued by insurance companies according to insurance clauses, mine reclamation trust stipulated in income tax clauses, other forms of corporate securities and their guarantees, including asset mortgage and sinking fund, etc.
in the whole development process, environmental audit is very necessary. In this way, mining companies can find the existing environmental problems in time and solve them quickly.
environmental protection runs through the whole mining process. Usually, mining companies themselves will carry out land reclamation during mining. When preparing for reclamation, they must make their mine conditions meet the relevant standards stipulated in Chapter VII of the Mining Law. At the same time, there should be several priority principles in reclamation:
(1) protecting the health and safety of the public;
(2) reduce environmental damage;
(3) Make rational and effective use of land under the condition of restoring the original appearance or acceptable changes;
(4) consider the harmony with the surrounding environment.
Fourth, the laws and regulations formulated are both detailed and flexible.
Canada has always been committed to developing the economy and protecting the environment. In 198, the World Commission on Environment and Development turned its attention to the policies and practical activities of promoting sustainable development that the public cared about. Sustainable development aims to meet the needs of the present without endangering the needs of future generations. The Canadian government has set the goal of sustainable development and made active efforts for it.
environmental assessment is a useful tool to help policy makers achieve the goal of sustainable development. It provides a series of methods for determining the environmental impact of the proposed project. By analyzing the environmental impact that has not yet occurred, decision makers can modify the plan in time in order to reduce or eliminate this impact as much as possible. In 1974, the Canadian government began to use environmental impact assessment as a planning tool to predict the possible environmental impact and facilitate the formulation of government policies.
in p>1987, the central government conducted extensive consultation on the central environmental assessment procedures. Participants called for an explainable, administrative and simple evaluation procedure, which should be based on the law and have the characteristics of implementation, efficiency, fairness and openness. At the same time, the World Council for Environmental Development is also promoting and paying attention to the public's requirements for Canadian environmental assessment methods. The Committee pointed out that environmental assessment will be more effective if it is legislated.
In addition, people are becoming more and more aware that the environmental assessment of the central government and the provincial government should be more consistent and harmonious. Without close cooperation, the project evaluation will lead to unnecessary duplication, confusion and more input from all parties.
In p>199, the Ministry of Environment promulgated a package of reform measures, including new environmental assessment laws, new policies and environmental assessment methods for project plans to support public participation in environmental assessment procedures. In June 1992, after a nationwide consultation and parliamentary hearing, Bill C-13, the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, was approved by the government and promulgated on January 19, 1995. This Act sets out the responsibilities and procedures of project environmental assessment. This Act provides clear and harmonious procedures, and defines the degree of impact for environmental assessment, so that relevant institutions can estimate the possible environmental impact in advance at the planning stage. The main objectives of the bill are:
to ensure that the environmental impact of the project can be carefully considered before EIA
(1) to encourage environmental assessment to play a role in promoting sustainable development, so as to obtain a healthy economy and environment.
(2) Ensure that the implemented project will not cause obvious environmental impact.
(3) Ensure public participation in the environmental assessment process.
In addition, Canada has formulated detailed guidelines on environmental assessment, such as early application, self-assessment, high efficiency and economy, open participation and so on.
in addition to detailed provisions, some laws and regulations have some flexibility in the implementation process. The environmental assessment law mentioned above has been formulated for a long time and in great detail, but there are still many specific situations that cannot be covered in the laws and regulations. For example, in the three abandoned mines in Timmins, in order to prevent the leakage of tailings, this act was not followed in the implementation. According to the suggestion of the Northern Ministry of Mines and Development, if this law is followed, it will cause different impacts and injuries to people and property. The main manifestations are as follows:
(1) The lag of land consolidation in the preparation of environmental assessment will lead to water leakage and tailings overflow, which will endanger dams and spillways.
(2) Out-of-control water leakage and tailings overflow can also pollute the surrounding waters and their ecological environment, threatening people's health and property, and endangering aquatic habitats.
Therefore, special treatment can be made under the following circumstances:
(1) In Ergwei mining area, the surface water in the southern disposal area is discharged to the porcupine River for a long time through spillway, and the northern dam and spillway are repaired to ensure the integrity of the dam and reduce disasters.
(2) As for Hollinger Mine, a trench was dug to drain the waste water from the top of the waste residue pile for a long time, so as to enhance the stability of the mine slope.
(3) In the Mcintyre mining area, a path with permeability was built to block the waste residue of the McIntyre mine pile from slipping; Waste residue dug in two sewage pits.
at the same time, potential impact institutions such as Ministry of Natural Resources, Ministry of Environment, Mattagami River Conservation Agency and Timmons Company should consider these factors before the project implementation. Some professional engineers will perform analysis and design work, and construction engineers will participate in supervising and checking the progress of the project.
V. Importance of public participation
Public participation plays a very important role in the formulation of environmental policies. Traditionally, the government and enterprises have been committed to the formulation of mining implementation standards and policies. This makes it easy for people to accept and understand some mining work. Voisey