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WCC 2016 Res 053 - Activity Report

Submitted by Bertrand.SANSONNENS on Tue, 01/30/2018 - 21:08
General Information
Protecting coastal and marine environments from mining waste
IUCN Constituent: 
Pro Natura / Friends of the Earth Switzerland
IUCN Constituent type: 
IUCN Member
Period covered: 
2017
Geographic scope: 
Global
Country/Territory: 
Norway
In implementing this Resolution your organization has worked/consulted with...
IUCN Members: 
Norwegian Environment Agency / Norway
Ministry of Climate and Environment (Norway) / Norway
World Wide Fund for Nature - Norway ( WWF ) / Norway
IUCN Secretariat: 
No
Other non-IUCN related organisations: 
Friends of the Earth Norway, Friends of the Earth Europe, Friends of the Earth International, Earthworks, Nature and Youth, Young Friends of the Earth Europe, Vevring og Førdefjorden Miljøgruppe, Sabima, Norwegian salmon rivers, Norwegian association of Hunters and Anglers, Future in our hands, The Norwegian Trekking Association, Union for Norwegian coastal fishermen, The Norwegian Fishermen’s Ass
Implementation
Indicate and briefly describe any actions that have been carried out to implement this Resolution: 
ActionDescriptionStatus
Education/Communication/Raising awarenessWe have together with Friends of the Earth Norway been working to spread information of the harmful effects of dumping mining waste in the sea, and to persuade the Norwegian government to stop dumping mining waste in the fjords. This includes information work in social and traditional media, arranging seminars, and meeting with politicians. On-going
Policy influencing/advocacyTo our knowledge there has not been done anything by the IUCN to implement the motion. We are not aware that the IUCN’s Director General has initiated discussions with the governments of the countries concerned, nor that anything has been done to develop stricter international regulations. We are not aware of any progress in the work to have the practice regulated through the general principles of the IMO and the London Convention and protocol. As far as we know, none of the other countries concerned have done anything to ban marine disposal of mine tailings for new mines, or to plan a stop to their ongoing marine disposal sites. - None -
Policy influencing/advocacyWe have through Friends of the Earth Europe, together with several Norwegian organizations, sent complaints to the EFTA surveillance agency that the Norwegian government is violating two directives; the water framework directive and the mining waste directiveOn-going
Please report on the result /achievement of the actions taken: 
The EFTA Surveillance agency (ESA) has closed our case about the planned dumping in Førdefjord violating the water framework directive, because they can’t find any processing errors, and don’t see it as their role to “evaluate the merits of Norway’s decision, nor can it re-assess the evidence relied upon by it in the decision”. For the other cases, we haven’t gotten any final answer yet, and the complaint for violation of the mining waste directive is being processed now. We have asked ESA for a meeting to discuss this. Lobbying the Norwegian government has been partly successful, as the new Norwegian government has agreed on a platform where it is stated that they will assess whether the legislation on waste disposal in the mining industry is sufficient, while exploring the consequences of a ban on new sea deposits. They will not give any new discharge permits for sea deposits of mining waste for the next four years. However, we have not managed to get them to stop ongoing or planned sea deposits, and they are still lobbying to get submarine tailings accepted as best available technology internationally.
What challenges have you encountered in implementing this Resolution and what measures have you taken to overcome them?: 
The main challenge is the strong opposition from companies and governments who still wants to dump mining waste in the sea, and the lack of resources to work against them.
Identify and briefly describe what future actions are planned for the implementation of this Resolution: 
Future ActionDescription
Education/Communication/Raising awarenessTogether with Friends of the Earth Norway we will spread information about the plastic content in the tailings. Plastic used to ignite explosives in the mines will end up as finely grinded microplastics in the tailings, creating serious problems for marine life.
Policy influencing/advocacyTogether with Friends of the Earth Norway and Earthworks we are trying to build an international coalition of organizations against dumping mining waste in the sea. The plan is to launch a campaign in February, targeting the financial backers of mining companies using this practice.
Additional Information
Upload document: 
PDF icon Complaint WFD.pdf