Mining and the environment: Land reclamation policies and options for south-east Asia

A mechanism to achieve the goal of developing a country's mineral industry to the fullest extent, while taking into account environmental costs, should include the following basic principles: Minimize disincentives for investment in the mineral industry; Have highest possibility to achieving the goal of environmental protection; Provide incentives to the mining industry,to optimize activities which protect the environment; Incur the lowest cost at each level of acceptable environmental protection; Be flexible with respect to changes in economies, technology and other sector-related factors; and Be practical, enforceable and applicable within a country's policy and capability. Effective environmental protection requires four key components: legislation, monitoring, enforcement, and incentives. The benefits of using a reclamation bond policy are that (a) it would be an incentive for proper planning, (b) innovative mitigation and reclamation technologies will be developed and used, (c) mined-out areas will be reclaimed and thereby appropriate for other end uses, (d) mining will be conducted efficiently by taking into account "real" production costs including environmental and social costs, and (e) land-use conflicts between mining and other economic activities will be lowered. Most of all, it will be a major step forward in ensuring the sustainable development of the minerals industry. Although imposing any additional cost, such as having the reclamation bond, may act as a disincentive to invest in the mineral industry in certain limited cases, when considered in terms of societal welfare and the efficient uses of country's resources for sustainable development, such a performance guarantee scheme is necessary for the countries of the Asian and Pacific region.