A mining project can extend over several decades and therefore one should not now change the new law in a fundamental way, says the industry organization, to the newspaper HBL.
The Citizens 'Initiative on changes in the Mining Act has received the 50,000 signatures required for a citizens' initiative to reach the Finnish parliament.
The initiative proposes, among other things, that a tax should be taken up from the mining companies based on the amount of ore that is mined in their mines. This is something that worries the industry organization Kaivosteollisuus.
- Several of our open-pit mines in Finland would have to close again if this were to happen, says Pekka Suomela, who is the operational manager of the organization.
The mining industry would rather want a possible mining tax to be based on something other than the amount of mined ore.
"If we are forced to introduce a mining tax, we want it to go to the municipalities and the inhabitants who live in the area where the mines are located," says Suomela.
A mining project can extend over several decades and therefore one should not change the new law from 2011 in a basic way, but wait and see the effects of the earlier changes, says Suomela.
- All mines we have in Finland today were founded during the time when the old mining law of 1965 still applied. Therefore, one should be cautious about changing the new mining law from 2011, as we have not yet seen its impact on the mining industry yet, says Suomela.
More responsibility from the state's hold is called for
- We must remember to protect the domestic industry. It is the question of balancing all new regulations that are introduced, we hardly want to end up in a situation where we import all ore from, for example, Sweden.
In the industry, one is basically positive about the companies taking more responsibility for protecting the environment, but one also wants the state to better take its responsibility.
"For example, when the mine in Hitura was to close down, the state environmental authorities estimated the costs for the closure of the mine to EUR 4.5 million, but in practice, it cost EUR 15 million," says Suomela.
In the citizens' initiative, it is also proposed that the state and the landowners should own the mining minerals on their land. Currently, the minerals are owned by the companies that dig them up.
"It may sound like a radical change in theory, but in practice, it is not a very big change compared to today, as the state already regulates and monitors all mining activities in Finland," says Suomela.