Environmental monitoring of mines after closure

As described in the section Environmental monitoring for mines in operation, monitoring remains relevant after a raw material project has been decommissioned and closed. This work is also subject to the authorisation process leading up to the granting of an exploitation permit. Thus, even before the start of the construction phase, a mining company must have planned how the project will be closed and how the affected environment will be left. This will often involve some permanent changes, for example in the form of a modified landscape, or permanent disposal of ‘waste rock’ or tailings. Other parts of the affected environment will return over time to the state before the raw material project was launched (baseline level).

This transition from a closed project to a new normal state for the environment is monitored by the Environmental Agency for Mineral Resource Activities (EAMRA).