Macri gov't to push mine closure regulatory bill in Congress

In what remains of its first-term legislative period, the Mauricio Macri wants to implement new regulation to ensure orderly financial and environment management of mine closures.

The government's coalition allies in Congress are currently seeking consensus to pass a bill aimed at addressing the challenges of mine closures, Perfil reported.

"We need to have regulatory management tools to carry out the closing stages, which all mining projects experience, involving the closure of operations and post-closure controls, without overlooking financial aspects", Mining Policy Secretary Carolina Sánchez told Télam news agency.

The sector wants financial guarantees incorporated into the law. These are reportedly undergoing review by lawmakers.

Sánchez said the goal is to "add regulation that offers a series of financial mechanisms to address all sizes of project, which promotes the best progressive closure management practices, and which does not have earlier than expected impacts of funding so that an operation, upon its closure, can remedy any unforeseen damages".

"The best practices involved progressive funding of management projects to avoid accumulated environment damage and so that a project can incorporate in its planning the social and environment investment that a closure requires", she added.

The draft bill has involved consultation with international organisations including ICMM, APEC, the World Bank, the Western Australian Government, the Queensland Government and the National Geology and Mining Service of Chile, with the technical support of the Canadian International Resources and Development Institute (CIRDI).

-TIMES/PERFIL