The European Commission published its proposal for an EU raw materials initiative (Critical Raw Materials Act, CRMA) in March 2023. The proposal contains plans to open new mines in Europe and to utilize minerals found in the waste materials of closed mines. Permitting procedures for new mines are additionally proposed to be shortened, and mining companies will be required to report their environmental footprints to the EU. The European Parliament approved the Act last September. To scrutinize the proposed Act, along with its implications to mining practices and our planetary boundaries, we held a seminar series with invited experts during autumn 2023.

The seminar series revolved around crucial questions that are expected to fundamentally shape our future: do we have enough minerals in the world for a green transition? What will be the environmental impact of increasing the number of mines? Is circular economy the solution, or should we reduce our consumption?

Europe depends on imported critical raw materials for its green transition

The autumn seminars were kicked off with a thoroughly informative presentation by Henna Virkkunen, Member of The European Parliament (MEP), working on the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE). MEP Virkkunen laid out the facts: the EU is currently dependent on China when it comes to critical raw materials. While Europeans consume around 20% of the world’s critical raw materials, only approximately 2% are produced in Europe. The proposed Act supports the plan to shift this balance towards a more self-sufficient and supply-secure future. The audience raised concerns about environmental safety and environmental degradation due to the increasing volume of mining, especially considering the simplified permitting process for critical raw material projects.

Tackling biodiversity loss while increasing mining is a conundrum

Transitioning from a fossil fuel-based economy is argued to be dependent on mining more (critical) raw materials. But how to do it sustainably with minimal environmental damage, and how well are natural values considered in the short and long term when decisions are made regarding new mines? The Chairman of the Finnish Nature Panel Professor Janne Kotiaho, from the University of Jyväskylä, and environmental activist Riikka Karppinen from Sodankylä further reflected on these questions.

Professor Kotiaho’s message was grimly realistic: biodiversity loss continues at an accelerated rate in both Europe and Finland, and we are all responsible for it. He argued that at the current state of affairs, to truly halt biodiversity and nature loss, we need to implement restorative, nature-positive solutions instead of solutions based on the principle of no net loss. Karppinen expressed shock and discontent regarding the aims to facilitate the opening of new mines in currently protected areas in the name of a green transition. Karppinen has frequently spoken out against a global mining company that is planning on opening a new nickel mine near her home in an area protected by Finnish law and the EU Natura framework. During her presentation, she kindly shared her experiences regarding the residents’ struggles.

The critical raw materials are not renewable

The green transition’s burden on the natural environment may indeed be enormous. But do we have enough materials to fully shift to renewables, or are we about to reach the limits of the planet’s boundaries? Research Professor Simon Michaux, from the Finnish Geological Survey, provided astounding figures on the amounts of minerals actually required for the green transition. According to his estimates, at current energy use rates, we simply do not have enough minerals in the world to fully shift to renewables, and in fact, minerals are “the new oil”. Professor Michaux’s presentation left us thinking: if we do not have enough materials in the world to substitute fossil fuels with renewables, are our current consumption patterns simply doomed?

To better understand how the new Critical Raw Materials Act may look like in Finland, we listened to a presentation by Jarkko Vesa, Special Advisor at the Finnish Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment. He provided a thorough overview on how the implementation process began. As the Director of Sustainable Development of the mining company Terrafame, Veli-Matti Hilla further underscored: it is clear that mining has received a substantial boost from the EU institutes.

A mix of solutions is needed for a sustainable future

Director Lasse Miettinen from Sitra gave the closing presentation to our seminar series, and it ended on a rather optimistic note. He argued – in line with most of our presenters, along with our own concerns – that we are currently exceeding the limits of our planet. To imagine a more sustainable future, we need to learn to think about ecosystems in a more nuanced and interconnected way. The climate crisis, biodiversity loss, and natural resource depletion cannot be solved separately. Both biotic and abiotic resources are part of nature and managing them should be reframed accordingly. Director Miettinen argued that transitioning to a circular economy is a crucial part and precondition of the solution to our multiple crises. To reduce supply risks and ensure positive environmental outcomes, we need circular solutions, diversified supplies, and more local production beside aiming for sustainable lifestyles and biodiversity offsets. He encouraged us to think that building a more sustainable future is indeed possible.

Professor of Practice in Environmental Responsibility and Chair of the seminar series, Hannele Pokka further noted that while observing how mining in Finland has developed over the years, ordinary people tend to support mining but under no circumstances do they want a mine near their homes. Finland is an old mining country, and minerals have been extracted from the land for hundreds of years. Public opinion in Finland has taken a more critical stance on mining in recent years, which has been reinforced by the Talvivaara mine environmental disaster. It has been difficult for new mining projects to gain social acceptance, and several mining projects, especially in Northern Finland are pending. If mining companies want to seek approval for their projects, mining should be reformed to incorporate a more comprehensive notion of sustainability, including new approaches and technological solutions in water management.

The seminar series, above all, taught us that what used to be possible in mining is not so any longer, and we need drastic changes to remain within our planetary boundaries.

Seminar recordings and further reading materials are available via the links embedded in the text.

Source: Mirage News

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Conservationists say they have high hopes a proposed shift in B.C. policy could result in revolutionary change for forest protection.

The province is currently conducting consultations on its draft Biodiversity and Ecosystem Health Framework, which it describes as “a new and strategic direction for a more holistic approach” to stewarding land and water resources for future generations.

The policy builds on a three-way deal between the province, federal government and the Indigenous-led First Nations Leadership Council announced earlier this month to protect 30 per cent of B.C. lands and waters by 2030.

“Despite a very boring name, it may actually be one of the most consequential conservation policies in Canadian histories if it lands correctly,” Ken Wu, executive director of the endangered ecosystem alliance, said of the proposed framework.

“The areas that are typically neglected or minimized in the protected area system, the big trees, may actually end up getting protected as a result of this policy.”

Wu argues the province’s forest policies have traditionally put the highest value on the economic value of timber, with areas selected for conservation chosen from land with less productive growth.

That’s typically left the massive trees most people think of when they hear the term “old-growth” out of the equation, he said, something that could change under a more holistic approach that targets all types of ecosystems for conservation.

“This policy may ensure we get those areas finally saved and the industry can log second growth, and they can do it sustainably,” he said. “There are other options than logging the last of the forest giants.”

The framework would also create a provincial Office of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Health tasked with improving data collection on ecosystem health and “championing policies and approaches and ensuring accountability” on biodiversity in forestry policy.

Several other leading conservation groups in the province have also praised the proposed framework, but they aren’t the only ones at the table.

The industry group B.C. Council of Forest Industries told Global News Thursday that it was still reviewing the plan.

“Its potential direct impacts on our sector are not clear yet, and will depend on what the final policy looks like,” the council said in a statement.

Wu said First Nations will also play a critical role, as the stewards empowered to lead conservation initiatives on their territories.

The province is currently consulting with First Nations, multiple natural resource sectors and industry and local governments over the policy.

It is also accepting feedback from the public by email until Jan. 15, 2024.

Wu said he expects the policy to be finalized by next spring.

Source : Global News

The post Draft Policy Could Be a Game-Changer for B.C. Old-Growth Protection, Conservationist Says appeared first on Policy Print.

Gov. Maura Healey has unveiled what she’s touting as two “groundbreaking” new policies aimed at protecting the Massachusetts coastline.

The governor spoke about the policies during the keynote speech to a panel on ocean conservation at the Clinton Global Initiative’s meeting in New York City on Monday. She announced that, later this week, she’ll sign an executive order directing the state to create new biodiversity conservation goals for 2030, 2040 and 2050, as well as strategies for meeting them. Those targets, which will include coastal and marine habitats, will be “the strongest in the nation,” Healey vowed.

In addition, Healey said, she’ll sign another executive order that immediately bans the purchase of single-use water bottles by state agencies, a step she described as unprecedented among U.S. states.

“In our coastal state, we know climate change is our biggest threat,” Healey said. “We also believe that taking action is our greatest opportunity — to secure a safe, prosperous and sustainable future.”

Karissa Hand, a spokeswoman for the governor, said the state annually purchased about 100,000 single-use plastic water bottles. She added that while the ban will apply to state agencies including the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, it won’t affect individual school districts, which are controlled by municipalities.

Healey has positioned herself as a national climate leader since taking office in January, and she used her remarks to review previous steps she’s taken, including creating the nation’s first cabinet-level climate chief position — a role filled by former Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Melissa Hoffer — and moving to fill 25% of the state’s annual electricity needs via wind energy.

Local environmental activists were especially bullish on Healey’s announcement of new biodiversity targets Monday. 

Chris Powicki, who leads the Sierra Club of Massachusetts’ Cape Cod and Islands group, said the biodiversity push has “transformative potential.”

“That’s the most exciting part of today’s announcement,” Powicki said.”The idea that we can start to focus state policies and programs and investments and industries on protecting ecosystems is a really novel one, and one that has been a long time coming. And if the government actually succeeds in adopting it, I think there’s potential for really significant change.”

David O’Neill, the president of Mass Audubon, said he and his colleagues were “thrilled” by Monday’s announcement.

“The commitments that they are making, we hope. are hard and fast targets to protect land around our biodiversity hot spots around the commonwealth,” O’Neill said. “We’d love to see a commitment of resources to be able to protect more land, and to restore and manage land.”

Amy Boyd Rabin, the vice president of policy at the Environmental League of Massachusetts, said the push for new biodiversity targets will prove to be the more significant initiative. But she also praised the immediacy of the ban on water bottle procurement, noting that single-use plastics create new demand for fossil fuels, spread forever chemicals, and clog waterways.

Several Massachusetts municipalities have implemented similar bans, but prohibitions in some communities have been repealed after sharp debate.

“Doing things that can have immediate impact has a lot of significance, because the climate crisis and our ocean pollution crisis are not getting better with each passing day,” Boyd Rabin said.

Source : WGBH

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