Can Small Scale Mining Be Sustainable?
Christine Miller of Ethical Metalmiths and I have been corresponding lately about a number of issues. She co-directs Ethical Metalsmiths and has been traveling around the world with her Radical Jewelry Makeover.
The question of sustainability in context to small scale mining was addressed to both Greg Valerio and myself. As Greg is away at the moment, I answered. Below is Christina’s question, and my response.
~ Marc Choyt, Publisher, Fair Jewellery Action.
I have appreciated reading what you are both working on. It has raised a question in my mind that maybe you have already answered.
What are the long-term plans for artisanal / small-scale mining projects? As industrial mine sites have to close every 20+ years or so because the supply is gone, I can imagine that artisanal sites will face a similar situation.
Then again, the artisanal / small-scale sites might provide supply/income for a longer period of time because they are being mined at a much slower rate. What is the plan for a community that becomes dependent on mining revenue, grows into its new economic situation and then faces a diminished or consumed supply?
How will preparation for this scenario be handled? Is the idea that communities might evolve out of a mining based economy into another one; that they will need to create new economies to survive on? I am just curious and wonder how the project will address this.
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First, artisan small scale mining (ASM) done with hand tools can provide economic benefit that will last for last a long time. Sapphires have been mined in Sri Lanka by artisan miners since before the time of the Buddha. Deposits of other gemstones as well as rubies in Burma have also generated revenues for the local economy for hundreds of years. A more recent example of large gem deposits that have not yet been tapped is in Greenland. William Rohtert, who has documented high value ruby deposits, told me that small scale ruby mining in Greenland could supply the Inuit with a viable economy for hundreds of years as well.
Large scale mining, in contrast, is focused on extracting minerals as quickly and efficiently as possible. Their reason to exist is not to help in local jobs and economy—that is a by product. Publicly traded companies are mandated by law to maximize profit for the company, employees and shareholders. Consequently, huge amounts of value are exported from the community to justify the venture, leaving very little behind.
What takes Oro Verde two years to accomplish might take large scale mining two weeks. What might take a LSM mine twenty years to clear out might well provide a small ASM community for a hundred years or more. Even if an ASM community lasts twenty years, during that time, money will filter into the local economy to a much greater degree. More value will remain within the local economy.
With LSM, in contrast, after that twenty years, the community will be left with practically nothing. Their highest paid workers are generally ex-pats imported to that country. The likelihood of a strong local economic foundation is much greater in ASM than LSM.
Yet, I would not consider any mining scenario truly sustainable, even though LSM companies, such as Rio Tinto, have created entire publicity campaigns around their “sustainability.” First, mining is monumentally damaging to eco-systems. Boom and busts have been common in the mining industry throughout time. But from these resources entire, long lasting economic foundations have been created. A massive amount of infrastructure was generated in California and even beyond as a result of it’s gold rush. .
The cutting edge question is, how can these ASM opportunities be nurtured in such a way to create strong infrastructure and capacity that will outlast the mineral resource? This gets into grass roots development and creating capacity in the poor ASM communities. It involves dealing with massive and institutional corruption in developing countries. There is no easy way, but there is great potential. ASM provides the vast majority of material in the entire jewelry supply chain—some say up to 90% of all gemstones.
Hopefully, fair trade institutions will not be afraid of getting their hands dirty with small groups. The Diamond Development Initiative and the Alliance for Responsible Mining have created pathways that provide examples of what might be possible. Our efforts as jewelers to connect those ASM communities directly to retail our retail customer also helps.
Part of the mission of Fair Jewellery Action is to support these types of initiatives so that we can increase the beneficial impact of these positive developments, and support the grass roots local economies of vibrant ASM communities.
