Draft amendments to the Law on Minerals will return the right to grant exploration and mining licences for big projects to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE).

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Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Pham Khoi Nguyen.

The National Assembly on May 31 was briefed by its Economic Affairs Committee on proposed amendments to the Law on Minerals.

The amendments aim to restore order to the nation’s framework for minerals exploitation. Since 2005, when provincial governments were accorded the right to licence mining projects, the number of mines and miners has risen remarkably. However, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment says that many provinces violated the regulations on licencing.

Chairman Ha Van Hien said the committee wants the Government to add more specifics on the minerals the law comprehends and the extent that provincial government will retain authority to grant small-scale exploration and mining licences.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment’s statistics show that up to June 2009, provinces and cities had granted 3882 mining licences. Binh Thuan province ranked the first with 200 licences, followed by Vinh Long (155), Cao Bang (142) and Nghe An (126).

The number of mining companies rose from 427 in 2000 to 1400 in 2009 but only 150 have been licenced by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

The amendments would also clarify technical and financial conditions that a firm must meet to qualify for an exploration and mining licence.

The interests of people who live near mineral mines are also defined more specifically in the amended Law. In particular, miners must remediate the environment at mining sites, build infrastructure facilities and set aside part of their income to support local people.

During the past year, newspapers have reported extensive environmental damage from unsupervised mining operations in a number of provinces.

The National Assembly will discuss the draft amendments on June 16.

Le Nhung