Minerals news
The Mining Waste Directive will soon impact on day to day mineral extraction operations
The CBIMG has been the industry lead in discussions with Government and the Environment Agency on the development, transposition and implementation of the Mining Waste Directive in England and Wales.
The Directive was transposed into law in England and Wales in July 2009. The Environment Agency has been appointed as the ‘competent authority’ and all operations involving extractive waste will require permitting by them. The CBIMG expressed strong concern to Government that this approach will lead to an overly burdensome regulatory regime which would result in unnecessary duplication of existing mineral planning controls. We were, and remain of the opinion, that Mineral Planning Authorities, who have the necessary experience and skills, should, like in Scotland and Northern Ireland, be the competent authority. The first raft of permit applications for existing extractive waste operations is due to be submitted by the end of 2010 and time will tell if our concerns are justified.
The definition of waste – Minerals industry guidance note for extractive materials
The CBI Minerals Group has worked tirelessly to ensure that soils, overburden and similar materials are not categorised as extractive waste. Correspondence with Caroline Spelman, Secretary of State at DEFRA, resulted in the following policy position being confirmed in a letter from Lord Henley Minister of State at DEFRA:
"I understand that the Agency wrote to the CBI Minerals Group on 1 June to confirm the changes to its draft position statement on the classification of materials as extractive waste that it proposes to make. The effect of these changes is to accept that, on the basis of ECJ law on the interpretation of the definition of waste, overburden and topsoil may be classified as non-waste by products not only when used to fill voids but also when used for restoration purposes provided there is certainty of use. It will be necessary for the Agency to work with the industry to ensure the certainty test is sufficiently robust and the assessment will need to be made on a case by case basis".
The Environment Agency published the position statement referred to by the Minister - “Definition of Extractive Waste” on their website. This sets out their interpretation of extractive waste and describes the principles they will apply in assessing whether materials arising during an extraction process are extractive waste and will thus require permitting to comply with the Mining Waste Directive.
The CBI Minerals Group has now finalised its guidance note prepared in discussion with the Environment Agency to provide mineral operators with a practical means of deciding whether materials generated in the course of mineral extraction operations are extractive waste.
The guidance note can be found here and the accompanying Extractive Materials Management Statement (EMMS) template can be downloaded
here.
CBI Minerals Group Workshop - Complying with the Mining Waste Directiven
11 October 2010. The CBI Conference Centre, 103 New Oxford Street, London WC1A 1DU
The deadline for permit applications to the Environment Agency for mining waste operations on existing sites is 30 December 2010 – this is extended to 1 May 2011 for the continued operation of a waste facility.
Operators will first need to decide whether they are managing extractive waste on each of their sites and the CBI Minerals Group has developed guidance in conjunction with the EA setting out a straightforward process for doing this. These assessments need to be made and agreed with the EA before the relevant permit application deadline - so time is short to comply.
To help with the process, the CBI is hosting a half-day workshop @ CBI, Centre Point Central London on 11 October 2010 on the practical aspects of complying with the Mining Waste Directive. The event is aimed at those who will be responsible for ensuring their organisation complies. Speakers will be drawn from the CBIMG members who have lead the discussions with the Environment Agency and the officers at the EA who have been responsible for formulating the guidance and the permitting process. EA experts will also be on hand to deal with any particular queries on a one to one basis.
This workshop is a valuable opportunity to learn about the new permitting process which will shortly impact on all mining and quarrying operations.
Full details of the programme and to book your place email Sue Thornton
Minerals and Historic Environment Forum for England
The CBIMG is a member of the Minerals and Historic Forum set up jointly with English Heritage, other mineral sector associations, leading organisations involved with the historic environment and mineral planning authorities.
With the support of the Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund, the Forum published Minerals Extraction and Archaeology: A Practice Guide in 2008. The Guide has been prepared as an aid to planning authorities, mineral planners, mineral operators, archaeologists and consultants. It builds on the CBI Archaeological Investigations Code of Practice (1991) and provides guidance for dealing with archaeological remains as part of mineral development through the planning process. It is hoped that the guide will help provide a more proportionate approach dealing with archaeological remains.
A series of workshops are to be held in the autumn to provide training on using the guide and a\ copy of the flyer for the events may be downloaded here.
Living with Minerals 4 (LWM 4) Conference 7 November 2011
The Living with Minerals 4 conference will take place on 7 November 2011 at the QEII Conference Centre in central London. Under the banner “Shaping UK Mineral Policy” the theme for LWM4 is “Globalism to Localism”. This will be a full day event with leading speakers from Government, industry and other key stakeholder. The Conference will also hear from leading personalities from the media and academia. It is also proposed to hold an extensive exhibition and provide ample opportunity for delegates to network.
The Living with Minerals series of conferences has developed into the leading cross industry minerals event in the UK and if you should wish to participate as a delegate, sponsor or exhibitor please register now with: Sue Thornton
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