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MIREU Survey results: Perceptions of Mining in Europe

Hilary Webb — Mon, 21 Sep 2020 13:55:59 +0000

MIREU Survey results: Perceptions of Mining in Europe Hilary Webb Mon, 21/09/2020 - 15:55

The online survey entitled 'The Perceptions of Mining in Europe' was conducted in the fall of 2019 with an aim to more clearly understand the relationship between individual attitudes toward mining and the most important conditions for the acceptance of mining.

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MIREU Survey results: Perceptions of Mining in Europe_2020-09-21_2727.pdf

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Draft SLO guidelines

Hilary Webb — Mon, 04 May 2020 12:07:06 +0000

Draft SLO guidelines Hilary Webb Mon, 04/05/2020 - 14:07

The draft of MIREU's SLO guidelines for consultation. When you have read the document, please leave feedback through this survey.

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Draft SLO guidelines_2020-05-07_2669.pdf

Deliverable 4.1

Hilary Webb — Fri, 10 Apr 2020 13:42:21 +0000

Deliverable 4.1 Hilary Webb Fri, 10/04/2020 - 15:42

The attached document is deliverable 4.1 from the MIREU project.

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Survey on the perceptions of mining in Europe – preliminary results

Ryan Titley — Thu, 23 Jan 2020 16:34:31 +0000

Survey on the perceptions of mining in Europe – preliminary results Ryan Titley Thu, 23/01/2020 - 17:34

Understanding people's perceptions of mining - their thoughts, feelings and expectations - is a key component of the MIREU project. Peoples’ values underlie these perceptions and therefore influence not only thoughts, feelings and expectations, but decision-making as well. The aim of the survey is to, within Europe, more clearly understand the relationships between individual personal values, feelings about mining, and the most important conditions for the acceptance of mining, or if indeed, mining can be accepted at all. As the MIREU project is supposed to address both mining and metallurgy, but the two activities appear to be viewed quite separately in the general public’s mind, several questions were included asking about peoples’ attitudes toward metallurgy specifically.

It is a targeted online survey, initially written in English and then translated into six other languages, and sent to people in Europe that have some knowledge about and/or experience with mining. A snowball sampling method is used where the survey is first distributed to MIREU partners and others more loosely involved in the MIREU project, and these people were in turn asked to forward the survey to their personal and professional networks.

The survey was divided into two sections: Part A includes general questions about values using a social science method called the Schwartz Scale. This method has been tested for decades and shows there are universal values that are recognised throughout every major culture. Part B shifts the focus to mining and includes questions on general perceptions and expectations of the mining and metallurgy sector.

Highlights

What is clear from the results is that all stakeholder groups across Europe feel something is wrong with the way mining is conducted in Europe today and that something needs to be changed. Keeping things as they are is not an option.
While there are flaws, people overwhelmingly want change through legislation.
No matter how responsibly companies operate, this alone is not enough to ensure there will be an overall acceptance of mining. To have acceptance, government must step in and play a larger role.
Self-determination is not as important in Europe as in other parts of the world, but it is still important. The way Europeans want to see that self-determination realised, however, is via legislation.

Survey Statistics

Number of responses:

English language survey = 86 responses; Finnish language survey = 62 responses; German language survey = 50 responses; Portuguese language survey = 30 responses; Spanish language survey = 19 responses; Polish language survey = 18 responses; Swedish language survey = 13 responses

Geographic distribution of the survey:

Number of responses by occupation:

English survey: Researchers - 35.62 % and Public Administration - 15.07%
Finnish survey: Researchers – 34.43% and Retired - 18.03%
German survey:* Students - 70% and Civil Society - 6.25%
Portuguese survey: Public Administration – 23.08%, Students - 23.08% and Civil Society - 15.38%
Spanish survey: Mining Industry - 52.63% and Researchers - 26.32%
Polish survey: Researchers - 35.62% and Mining Industry - 6.25%
Swedish survey: Researchers – 23.08% and Public administration - 15.38%, Civil Society-15.38%

*It is important to note that the majority of responses to the German language survey are from students in Austria. This is because one of the MIREU partners gave it to his students and asked them to fill the survey out as a class exercise.

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Survey on perceptions of mining in Europe extended

Ryan Titley — Mon, 16 Dec 2019 15:22:29 +0000

Survey on perceptions of mining in Europe extended Ryan Titley Mon, 16/12/2019 - 16:22

MIREU's survey on perceptions of mining in Europe has been extended its deadline for responses to 30 November 2019. The survey aims to collect people's thoughts, feelings and expectations of mining, something which is a key component of the MIREU project. Completing the 15-20 minute survey is a chance to influence future policy and practices in the mining and metallurgy industries as we work towards becoming a more responsible sector.

The survey is now available in seven languages, links to which you can find below. Please complete the survey and share it with your network.

Click here to take the survey in English.

Click here to take the survey in Polish.

Click here to take the survey in German.

Click here to take the survey in Finnish.

Click here to take the survey in Portuguese.

Click here to take the survey in Swedish.

Click here to take the survey in Spanish.

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Survey on the perceptions of mining in Europe

Ryan Titley — Mon, 16 Dec 2019 15:29:53 +0000

Survey on the perceptions of mining in Europe Ryan Titley Mon, 16/12/2019 - 16:29

The MIREU project is currently running a survey on the perceptions of mining in Europe. We would ask you to fill in the survey (it takes about 15-20 minutes) and support the project.

Understanding people's perceptions of mining - their thoughts, feelings and expectations - is a key component of the project. By participating, your values will influence industry practices and government policy and contribute to one of the most important project outcomes: guidelines for industry, government and communities on how to work together and ensure a more responsible mining and metallurgy sector.

The survey is open until 31 October. Please find the survey here.

If you are interested in receiving a link to the survey in your mailbox, please complete the webform below.

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Thu, 03/10/2019 - 09:00

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3rd SLO stakeholder workshop - briefing memo

Ryan Titley — Thu, 02 Jan 2020 14:40:19 +0000

3rd SLO stakeholder workshop - briefing memo Ryan Titley Thu, 02/01/2020 - 15:40

This is the briefing memo from the 3rd MIREU SLO stakeholder workshop with the theme ‘ensuring SLO is adaptive and resilient" which took place on 5-6 June 2019 in Brussels, Belgium. This workshop was the third and last in a series of stakeholder workshops organised in the MIREU project.

This report presents a summary of the discussions and outcomes of the workshop.

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3rd SLO stakeholder workshop - briefing memo_2020-01-02_2264.pdf

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3rd MIREU SLO workshop shows that different understandings exist of acceptance and civil participation in mining in Europe

Ryan Titley — Mon, 16 Dec 2019 16:20:26 +0000

3rd MIREU SLO workshop shows that different understandings exist of acceptance and civil participation in mining in Europe Ryan Titley Mon, 16/12/2019 - 17:20

Under the title "Ensuring SLO is adaptive and resilient", GKZ and the University of Lapland organised the third (and final) SLO stakeholder workshop of the project MIREU - Network of Mining and Metallurgy Regions in EU - in Brussels. The host was the Saxon Liaison Office, which is increasingly dedicated to mining issues and has become an important port of call in the heart of Europe in this regard. As the leader of the SLO work package in the MIREU project, the University of Lapland team would like to thank GKZ and all the partners who helped design and run the workshop as well as a big thanks to all of the participants.

The workshop was split between the main event and an optional session with KU Leuven. The topics for discussion in the main event included (1) the different view of stakeholders and applicability of SLO at the regional level; (2) understanding how continuing to empower communities could affect the administrative, legislative and political decision-making processes; (3) the general negative perception of mining across Europe and whether the industry can borrow experiences from other industries, for instance, forestry; (4) examples from different European regions that encourage SLO via a non-binding approach; (5) how SLO is seen outside of Europe and what it means for a European mining industry that is operated by global industrial players; and (6) what should be taken into consideration when developing an SLO guiding framework tailored for Europe.

The two-day workshop showed that the understanding of SLO varies across Europe and, more often than not, SLO is not the term used when addressing acceptance issues at the regional level in Europe. Also of note was the debate around the general trend toward citizen empowerment. For example, the climate change movement Friday-for-Future, and the concerns some in the mining industry have as to how far that empowerment could go, and therefore the potential for SLO to be used as a veto to stop any development. Two important questions arose “does civil society need to be accountable to anyone?” and how do we reconcile SLO, which is defined as voluntary measures, with current legislation that already gives substantial participation to the public? MIREU partners and stakeholders from both Europe and overseas determined the core drivers of and barriers to SLO fitted in the European context in order to improve SLO’s resilience and adaptiveness.

The SLO measures introduced by different partners and presenters ranged from strategies to raise raw material awareness, to improvements in the educational system, to government changing stakeholders’ perceptions by directly involving stakeholders in (technical) evaluation processes, to companies adopting voluntary-based standards schemas created by governments and/or mining associations, to creating a neutral space for stakeholder communication - the list goes on.

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3rd MIREU SLO workshop shows that different understandings exist of acceptance and civil participation in mining in Europe

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Mine closure and tourism

Ryan Titley — Thu, 19 Dec 2019 11:02:40 +0000

Mine closure and tourism Ryan Titley Thu, 19/12/2019 - 12:02

Background

The 2nd MIREU SLO Workshop with the theme ‘SLO and Regional Development Perspectives’ took place in Leoben, Austria on 24-25 October 2018. This workshop was the second in a series of stakeholder workshops organised in the MIREU project. The main objective of this workshop was to explore the linkages between social license to operate (SLO) and regional development.

The second day of the workshop was concluded with four parallel breakout sessions on topics related to specific regional questions. One of these topics was ‘Mine Closure and Tourism’, which refers to the potential of post-mining areas for tourism development.

Breakout Discussion

Post-mining areas often offer huge potential for tourism development. The tourism industry is experiencing a stable, moderate growth despite periods of economic downturn. Industrial tourism has boomed in recent years and the number of post-mining sites on the UNESCO list is constantly increasing. These facts make us think about post-mining areas in the context of tourism. However, it is important to remember that appropriate reclamation must be done and that the selected industrial heritage - infrastructure, geological phenomena, new landscape, biodiversity and tradition, should be protected. Post-mining tourism can thus help gaining social acceptance for mining activities.

The discussion in this breakout session focused on the enabling factors and conditions and the barriers for post-mining tourism, as well as how post-mining tourism links and contributes to SLO and to the regional development.

Some of the enabling factors discussed amongst the participants are the uniqueness of post-mining sites, such as the landscapes, the traditions and the possibility to present mining methods. The presence of a tourism industry in the region, which can be supplemented with new attractions, also help enabling post-mining tourism as well as a research institution which can develop a tourist project in the post-mining area. It is also beneficial if the land use documents contain the relevant provisions for such a project and that the post-mining area fulfils all safety conditions. Barriers for the development of post-mining tourism could according to the participants constitute of a lack of resources or political will to develop a post-mining area into a tourist attraction; unregulated ownership of the post-mining area; occurrence of prospective mineral deposits near the post-mining area; or a lack of acceptance from the local community for tourism development.

How can post-mining tourism then contribute to SLO? The participants found that post-mining tourism can help improving the image of mining activities and can contribute to people’s understanding of the life cycle of a mine. Land reclamation in mining areas also build legitimacy and social trust. Post-mining tourism also contributes to the regional development, as tourism can bring long-term revenues to the region together with jobs and livelihood. The regional identity can also be strengthened, and the increased tourism may diversify local businesses and make them more resilient. The region can also benefit from selling know-how and innovation in the scope of reclamation.

Picture: A post-mining site in the village of Bobrowisko in Poland, which was used for sand and gravel extraction, was reclaimed and covered by natural succession and has recently been transformed into a tourist attraction. The architects are 55Architekci.

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Tue, 19/03/2019 - 09:00

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2nd SLO workshop summary report

Ryan Titley — Thu, 02 Jan 2020 14:33:05 +0000

2nd SLO workshop summary report Ryan Titley Thu, 02/01/2020 - 15:33

The 2nd MIREU SLO workshop with the theme ‘SLO and regional development perspectives’ took place in Leoben, Austria on 24-25 October 2018. This workshop was the second in a series of stakeholder workshops organised in the MIREU project. The main objective of this workshop was to explore the linkages between social license to operate (SLO) and regional development.

This report presents a summary of the discussions and outcomes of the workshop.

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2nd SLO workshop summary report_2020-01-02_2258.pdf

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