The MinLand workshop, organised by MEERI PAS (Mineral and Energy Economy Research Institute Polish Academy of Science), was held on October 8, 2018 in Krzeszowice (Malopolska province) in the Czatkowice Limestone Mine.

Aim of Polish Local Workshop was discussion about possibility of mining activity in complicated environmental and spatial conditions (based on case study – Czatkowice Limestone Mine). The expansion of exploitation was related to the complicated local environmental conditions associated with occurrence of landscape park (the new part of deposit is located in park boundary), natural reserve, Natura 2000 area, Monastery Complex and drinking water intakes. Starting the mining activity required many activities related to abolition of extraction ban in landscape park, obtaining of environmental decision and changes of local spatial planning documents.

The meeting was attended by 27 experts from the following institutions: central authorities, regional government, local government, consulting companies, research institutions and  industry.

The workshop was divided into three parts: presentations connected with MinLand project, detailed characteristic of Czatkowice Limestone Mine and technical visit at the Czatkowice mine.

The roundtable discussion was fruitful allowing reaching some conclusions:

• properly implemented spatial planning system on the local level (commune level in Poland) may decide on success – it takes into account the all environmental conditions of the development of a given commune, including the occurrence of the documented mineral deposits;
• it is necessary to ensure proper provisions in the documents regulating the functioning of various forms of nature conservation (e.g. landscape parks);
• the commune’s experience suggests the need to update local planning documents even every 5 years (but they should take into account the perspective of at least 10 years);
• facilitation for mining entrepreneurs (shortening procedures) is the possibility of parallel work on amendment of local spatial planning documents (the Study of Conditions and Directions of Spatial Development of Commune and the Local Spatial Management Plan of Commune (in Polish hierarchy of spatial documents the Study.. is superior document in relation to Local Spatial…));
• it is necessary to improve (shorten) procedures related to environmental impact assessment and obtaining environmental decisions;
• properly conducted dialogue with the local community and local authorities may decide on success (CSR could be the key to success);
• it is much easier for mining entrepreneurs to operate in municipalities with a mining tradition (brownfield projects). The real challenge is to start a mining activity in “greenfield land”.

Click here to download the report.