Bhubaneswar, Feb. 18: With about eight new proposals for aluminium projects on the anvil, the Orissa government has decided to keep Sasubohumali bauxite deposits with the state -owned Orissa Mining Corporation (OMC), official sources said today.
Sasubohumali bauxite mines have a reserve of about 81 million tonnes of the metallic ore, having an average grade of 40.38 per cent of aluminium oxide and 2.63 per cent of sillicon dioxide.
While a large number of firms were eyeing Sasubohumali, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had asked the steel and mines department to recommend OMC's name in order to avail prospecting licence as well as mining lease. n pti

http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=9&theme=&usrsess=1&id=244442

Govt officials get court notice over Braj mining

19 Feb 2009, 0504 hrs IST, TNN

JAIPUR: The Rajasthan High Court on Wednesday issued a contempt of court notice to former secretary of mines department Ashok Singhvi, former

Bharatpur district collector Anand Kumar, the then superintending engineer MP Meena and mines engineer

, Bharatpur, Abdul Latif for failing to stop mining in the Braj region, despite a court order.

Justice Dalip Singh of the Jaipur bench issued the notice following a petition filed by Manmandir Seva Sansthan, an organisation fighting for the protection of the Braj area. The Sansthan had filed the contempt petition after they discovered that mining was still being carried out in certain areas of Braj despite a ban on it. The activists of the organisation had also been holding demonstrations in certain parts of Bharatpur demanding an end to the mining in the area.

Justice Singh, in a previous order, had restrained 117 licence holders from carring out any fresh mining activity in the area who had complained that their mining leases were prematurely terminated.

The court had not only endorsed the termination of the leases but also ordered that the lease-holders shall be allowed to take away the excavated material but incase any licensee violates the court order, then no such license holder shall be allowed to take away any excavated material form the pit.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Jaipur/Govt_officials_get_court_notice_over_Braj_mining/articleshow/4152805.cms

Excessive sand mining causes acute water scarcity in Marathwada

Rock bottom Ramesh Raut

SACHIN LAHANE

Farmers of Wadwali village in Maharashtra are keeping a lookout for sand mining contractors who often come there to excavate the Godavari’s sand and sell it to the construction industry in Pune and Nashik. In December, a group of farmers began a fast to protest indiscriminate sand mining and eight of them had to be admitted to hospital. This forced the Aurangabad district administration to set up a committee to look into farmers’ complaint that excessive and unscientific sand mining in their area had led to acute water scarcity, which in turn was ruining crops.

Although the committee gave a green signal for sand mining, fear of angry farmers is keeping contractors at bay.

The district administration first noted farmers’ complaints on November 4 when 50-year-old Laxman Aute of Wadwali in Paithan tehsil tried to immolate himself in front of the collector’s office. A policemen foiled the suicide attempt before he could strike a match. On November 1, Aute and 16 other farmers from in and around Wadwali had submitted a memorandum to the collector demanding sand mining be stopped in their area and had threatened immolation. Ignoring their protest, the administration auctioned seven sand belts along the Godavari, Anjana, Purna, Shivna and Gandhari rivers in Aurangabad. By doing so the district grew richer by Rs 11,563,000—but at the cost of its farmers.

The administration does not bother to monitor the way mining is carried out and the troubles it leads to, say farmers. “Most contractors don’t abide by the quantity of sand allotted to them. Rivulets have disappeared and one can see rocks in place of sandy riverbeds that help retain water. Groundwater is depleted and rivers shrunk. We have suffered crop loss since there is no water for irrigation,” said Aute.

The district administration is quick to shrug off the responsibility. Said A B Kamble, district sand mining work officer: “Gram sabha resolution is mandatory for the auction of sand belts. If villagers do not want sand mining, they should not pass a resolution.” But Wadwali sand belt was auctioned without the gram sabha resolution. “This year gram sabha was not held. The sarpanch and other office bearers took signatures of only 108 of the 2,500 residents,” alleged Raut.


“Rivulets have disappeared and groundwater is depleted. Crops are suffering for lack of irrigation” — LAXMAN AUTE, FARMER, WADWALI

Villagers say until a few years ago the Godavari would be full till its banks, but today it has shrunk, though official data shows much more water is released than earlier from the Jayakwadi dam. Water level in the wells is dipping. Tehsil records show that of 188 villages in Paithan, 143 have come to depend on tankers for drinking water, said villagers.

Most farmers have stopped cultivating water-intensive sugarcane and banana. Said Ashok Gonde of Wad- wali: “Till 2005 I had four hectares (ha) under sugarcane but now I have shifted to cotton.” Ashok Raut, another farmer in Wadwali, is in the same boat. “A few years ago I had 2 ha under banana and 1.2 ha under orange plantation. Now I grow cotton, pearl millet (bajra) and tur. My well has dried up. From a prosperous horticulturist, I have turned into an impoverished farmer dependent on rain,” lamented Raut. Some farmers have taken loans of over Rs 5 lakh and laid pipes to bring water from far away.

Rocks jut out in the excavated banks of the Godavari near Wadwali. “As per rule sand mining should not go below one metre of the surface, but here they have dug the river basin deeper than seven metres,” said Aute. Most contractors are ready to pay much more than the minimum government price for sand. Vaijapur tehsil’s sand is the most preferred. This year Harpalsing Bajwal, a Nashik-based contractor, bought 3,500 brass sand (a brass is enough to fill a 10x10 feet pit one foot deep, or 2. 83 cubic metre) in Dakpimpalgaon belt in Vaijapur by paying Rs 28.5 lakh when the government minimum price was Rs 13.4 lakh. Another contractor Kiran Patil paid more than 10 times the minimum price for Avvalgaon sand belt.

“There is no time limit specified for mining. Contractors can mine a belt in one day or one year. Truckers carrying the sand do not carry transit pass,” said Aute. When Down To Earth asked people mining sand near Wadwali for permit, they could not show any. Said Aute: “This has been going on for 20 years. Contractors are allowed to fill two brass sand in a truck, but they fill over four.”

Kamble said it was for the tehsil office to issue and check transit passes to truckers. Even when raids are conducted, truckers get away by paying a fine. On December 5, officials of Gangapur tehsil caught 67 trucks near the Shivna and handed them over to the police. Of them, 44 truck owners paid a fine. And the rest? They ran away with their trucks.

http://www.downtoearth.org.in/full6.asp?foldername=20090228&filename=news&sec_id=4&sid=34

Expansion of Toshali Cement hinges on mining lease renewal

Bishnu Dash / Kolkata/ Bhubanerswar February 19, 2009, 0:03 IST

The fate of the proposed Rs 140 crore capacity expansion of the Toshali Cement plant located at Ampavali in Koraput district remains uncertain, as the state owned Industrial Development Corporation of Orissa Ltd. (Idcol) is yet to take a decision on the company’s request for renewal of the mining lease (ML) for limestone mines.

Though the company submitted a proposal to the Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation (Ipicol) seeking to expand its cement production capacity from the existing 600 tonnes per day (TPD) to 2100 TPD, it is yet to take any decision in this regard. Sources said, Ipicol has told Idcol to communicate its decision on Toshali Cement’s request for renewal of the ML and extension of the lease area to cover the entire limestone deposits at the location instead of 50 percent of the area now.

“We have told Idcol to communicate Ipicol about its decision on the request of Toshali Cement to extend the term of the agreement by another 10 years. The expansion proposal can be put before the State Level Single Window Clearance Authority (SLSWCA) for consideration after Idcol agrees to the request ”, Ashok Meena, managing director, Ipicol told Business Standard.

Hyderabad based Toshali Cement Private Ltd.(TCPL) purchased the assets of the Snehadhara Industries located at Ampabali in 2004-05 after the unit became sick. The unit was referred to Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (BIFR) and the matter was referred to Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT).

TCPL entered into a five year agreement with the state owned Idcol for raising limestone from Ampavali mines in September 2004. Accordingly, TCPL was given the mining lease for 50 percent of the total mineable area of 500 hectares.

As per the agreement, the company paid royalty at the rate of 15 percent during the first three years, 20 percent in the fourth year and 25 percent in the fifth year to Idcol. Since the agreement will expire in September 2009 and the company intended to expand its capacity, it applied Idcol to allow mining in the total area along with renewal of the ML granted to the company for another 10 years.

Though Idcol has in principle agreed to renew the ML for the Ampavali limestone mines, the terms are being finalised. An internal committee constituted by Idcol is now examining the issue and is likely to come out with a report soon. The committee, sources said, may recommend for fixation of minimum raising capacity for TCPL which may be fixed at 25,000 tonne per month. It will be asked to pay full royalty to Idcol even if the raising is lower than this target.

The committee may also recommend to equalise the royalty paid by Toshali Cement to the state government with that of Idcol. It may also ask the company to pay the royalty amount as agency fees. Besides, continuation of the security deposit of Rs 20 lakh in cash and Rs 30 lakhs in bank guarantee may also be recommended by the committee.

The expansion proposal assumes importance as Orissa, despite the current wave of industrialization, was not able to attract any cement plant during the 10th plan period. That apart, the industries are not willing to set up their units in backward and naxal affected districts of the state.

http://business-standard.com/india/news/expansiontoshali-cement-hingesmining-lease-renewal/10/00/349462/

Capacity addtion at Vijaynagar takes JSW ahead of Tata Steel

BS Reporter / Mumbai February 19, 2009, 0:55 IST

Sajjan Jindal-controlled JSW Steel has become the largest private steel maker in the country, surpassing the century-old Tata Steel, with the commissioning of 3 million tonne per annum (MTPA) blast furnace at its Vijaynagar facility. JSW will be able to produce 7.8 MTPA steel, one million tonne more than Tata Steel, after the new capacity addition.

The new blast furnace is the largest in the country by capacity. This project has been commissioned in 31 months, one of the shortest durations, claimed the company. Over 20,000 people worked at the site during the peak of the project.

“With the commissioning of the largest blast furnace, JSW Steel has become the leading steel producer…. In this economic slowdown, the commissioning of the expansion project is a giant step towards making India proud,” said Sajjan Jindal, vice-chairman and managing director, JSW Steel.

Currently, JSW has 4.8 MTPA capacity, which includes 1-MTPA of Salem unit.

SAIL is India’s largest public sector steel maker with a capacity of close to 15 MTPA. Tata Steel was at the top among private players with an installed capacity of 6.8 MTPA.

Hit by the global economic crisis, JSW Steel had put on hold the commissioning of the new blast furnace for six months. However, marching ahead with its expansion plans, JSW Steel said it has achieved financial closure to further augment the capacity of the Vijanagar unit to 10-MTPA. The steel maker is also in the advance stage of setting up a 5-MTPA hot strip mill, which will be commissioned in the second half of the 2009-10.

http://business-standard.com/india/news/capacity-addtion-at-vijaynagar-takes-jsw-aheadtata-steel/10/00/349488/

India steel company to mine diamonds in Congo

2009-02-19 10:20:00

India's leading steel and power company Jindal Steel is on a mining mission across the globe. The company is all set to mine diamonds in Congo and iron ore in Bolivia.

Jindal Steel will invest up to USD 20 million in next 12 months for diamond mining in Congo. "We have got the licence to mine diamonds in Congo. We will be investing up to USD 20 million in an year's time for the purpose," JSPL whole-time Director Sushil Maroo said.

Jindal Steel, with primary interests in the steel and power sector, also said it would start mining iron ore from its mines in Bolivia in the second half of the year. "Production from Bolivia iron ore mines will start in another six months," he said.

Jindal secured the rights to mine the world's oldest Le Mutun iron ore reserves in the African country in 2006. The O P Jindal group firm has lined up an investment of USD 2.1 billion to set up steel making facilities as also developing the mines.

The company has also been granted the mining rights for 20 Bn tonnes of iron ore reserves from El Mutun iron ore Mines, Bolivia, which is one of the largest iron ore reserves in the world. JSPL plans to invest USD 2.1 bn over the next 8 years in creating an integrated steel plant, which would be capable of producing 1.7MTPA of long products of steel, and will also have DRI (Direct Reduced Iron /Sponge iron) Plant of capacity 6MTPA and a pellet plant of capacity 10MTPA.

Jindal will also be setting up supporting infrastructure for the proposed plant including a 450 MW Power Plant. Jindal emerged as the only company which met the qualifying criteria set by the Bolivian Government for this international tender. The company is in line with its philosophy of creating value for its stakeholders and local communities in which it operates will be setting up an ultra modern, environmentally friendly steel plant in Bolivia

http://www.commodityonline.com/news/India-steel-company-to-mine-diamonds-in-Congo-15314-3-1.html

Visa Steel hikes stake in JV with Chinese Bao

Press Trust of India / New Delhi February 18, 2009, 19:35 IST

Domestic steel producer Visa Steel has raised its stake to 65 per cent in Visa Bao, the joint venture with Chinese steel major Bao Steel, by way of realigning its corporate structure.

"Our board has approved the merger of 14 per cent stake held by our Swiss firm Visa Comtrade in the JV with Visa Steel, which had 51 per cent stake in Visa Bao," Visa Steel Chairman Vishambhar Saran told PTI on the sidelines of the ICC 'Mining to Steel Making Summit' here.

Visa Steel in 2007 had entered into a definitive agreement with Bao Steel to set up a 100,000-tonne ferro- chrome plant at an investment of Rs 260 crore in Orissa.

Amid global industrial downturn which has pushed down shipping freight charges, Visa Steel took the call to dilute Visa Comtrade's role in the JV.

"Now we will look to export ferro-chrome produced by the JV firm from India only. When shipping rates were at their peak, last year, we had planned something big for our Swiss firm in the JV," he added.

Visa Steel is also setting up a 1.5 million-tonne special and stainless steel project in Orissa at a cost of Rs 4,500 crore.

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/visa-steel-hikes-stake-in-jvchinese-bao/19/39/55300/on

Coal India to invest Rs.100 bn to revive mines in Jharia

February 18th, 2009 - 3:57 pm ICT by IANS -

New Delhi, Feb 18 (IANS) State-run Coal India Ltd will invest Rs.100 billion (Rs.10,000 crore) to revive coal mines at Jharia in Jharkhand, a top official said here Wednesday.
“Jharia coal mines are highly under-utilised and only coking coal is produced there. If the mine fire at Jharia is controlled and this facility is properly utilised, it alone can cater to the coking coal need of the whole steel industry,” Coal India chairman and managing director Partha S. Bhattacharyya told reporters on the sidelines of a conference.

The investment will be used to control the mine fire and install modern technologies for mining, he added.

“We are already in talks with major steel producers and the government. The only single issue is the rehabilitation of 100,000 families that has to be taken care by both government and the steel companies,” Bhattacharyya said.

The Jharia project had faced several roadblocks because of protests raised by affected people for proper rehabilitation.

“We are finding out a solution and the broader project plan to implement it,” Steel Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, who was also present at the programme, said.

http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/uncategorized/coal-india-to-invest-rs100-bn-to-revive-mines-in-jharia_100156616.html

NMDC eyes iron ore mines in Africa

Press Trust of India / New Delhi February 18, 2009, 17:45 IST

State-run mining giant NMDC is looking at acquiring iron ore mines in Africa, a top Steel Ministry official said today.

"NMDC has taken initiatives to buy iron ore mines in Africa. Its chairman was recently in Africa and has observed that there is a lot of opportunity to acquire mines there," Steel Secretary P K Rastogi said at a conference here.

When contacted, NMDC Chairman Rana Som confirmed the development and said the company has received a couple of proposals for forming joint venture with African companies to undertake greenfield mining operations.

While one of the proposals is for a magnetite mine in West Africa, the other is for an iron ore mine in South Africa, he said.

"In Africa, there is a lot of mining opportunity, which India as a nation can avail," Som said.

The country's largest iron-ore producer, NMDC, had last month said it would apply brakes on acquiring overseas mining assets due to the present economic downturn.

"Even now we stick to it. We have only received proposals for joint venture from African countries, which we are considering," Som said.

Besides Africa, NMDC is eyeing majority stakes in mining properties in Armenia, Australia and Brazil. Though due diligence of the properties have not been done, the Navratna PSU had inspected a couple of them in Armenia.

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/nmdc-eyes-iron-ore-mines-in-africa/17/48/55290/on

Mining – International

Mining unions urge export licences as Chinese bids continue

Posted 23 minutes ago
Updated 12 minutes ago

Chinese officials have been lobbying the Federal Government to allow more Chinese investment. (ABC TV News - file image: Photo courtesy of Oz Minerals Ltd)

Mining unions are calling for the Federal Government to reintroduce an export licence system for commodities as a Chinese aluminium company moves to take a stake in Rio Tinto.

The Government is currently considering the proposed $30 billion deal between Rio Tinto and Chinalco.

Smaller iron ore miner Fortescue Metals is also in talks with a Chinese steelmaker, while zinc producer, OZ Minerals, has agreed to be taken over by China Minmetals Corporation.

Chinese officials have been lobbying the Federal Government to allow more Chinese investment.

Some investors and analysts say Australia should not agree to the applications from a major customer who could put pressure on the price of key commodities like iron ore.

But others say the deals are injecting much needed capital into the sector.

The Construction Forestry Mining Energy Union's (CFMEU) president, Tony Maher, says he is not against the Rio Tinto deal, but he wants to see Australian interests maintained.

"We need to make sure that over-production is not stimulated by foreign interests in an effort to depress commodity prices," he said.

"That will drastically affect jobs in the industry and potentially devastate communities."

Mr Maher called for export licences, which were abolished in the early 1990s, to be reintroduced.

"Those controls are a way for the Government to assess whether or not production is being undertaken in the national interests," he said.

"It means [companies] have to get approval for whatever they negotiate on the market."

'National interest'

Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan told reporters yesterday he is looking at the merits of all deals before the Foreign Investment Review Board.

"I established at the beginning of last year guidelines which I announced and we will follow in establishing whether these investments are in the national interest or not, and I'll take our decision in the normal way," he said.

"We will analyse these proposals seriously and in a considered way and take our decision in the Australian national interest."

Many investors and analysts say Australia is selling off the farm for short-term gain.

Resources analyst Mark Taylor from Morningstar says Australia is in danger of selling off one if its key sources of income - resources.

"Every time we have a look at selling down a portion of that inheritance that we have, we should look at it extremely carefully because it does have long-term implications for our financial wellbeing as a country," he said.

There are reports that some of the Chinese steel firms are trying to negotiate cuts of between 30 to 50 per cent in iron ore prices, but Mr Taylor says this is not a huge problem because of surge in prices over the past decade.

"But it is significant in the sense that it could be an example of what happens when Chinese companies have more influence over what future prices might be," he said.

"The reason we had such a large rise in iron ore prices in the lead-up to this is because Australian and Brazilian iron ore producers effectively had an oligopoly in iron ore supply.

"It gave them a very powerful position in terms of pricing and if you're going to allow an erosion of that to occur then the obvious outcome is that the customer will have a stronger say in what the price will be in the future."

Chinese money

But Asandas investment adviser Mark Newter says many companies like OZ Minerals are cash strapped and need the money. He says companies like Mount Gibson Iron have only survived because they have been bailed out by their Chinese partners.

"Investors in general will have to put money in. OZ Minerals is the obvious one at the moment," he said.

"So if people aren't willing to put their money where their mouth is, we have to accept the Chinese money. I don't see any way around it at the moment."

Western Australian Premier Colin Barnett says there should be more controls over Chinese investment in Australia.

"What I would like to see, and I think what is important for Australia and particularly Western Australia, is that we do have Chinese investment in our mining industry," he said.

"But it would be similar to what has happened with Japan from the 1960s; that we get small, stable investments from Chinese steel mills, Chinese investment groups, and that becomes the basis of a long-term relationship.

"And I am keen to see China invest in new projects or expansion projects rather than simply ride on the back of what has already been there."

Last year there were dozens of applications by Chinese companies to the Foreign Investment Review Board. Analysts say there will be fewer but bigger deals this year.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/02/19/2496173.htm?section=australia

Hundreds call for end to mining damage

Mountaintop removal assailed

By James Bruggers • jbruggers@courier-journal.com • February 18, 2009

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Fresh from her well-publicized skirmish with Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin over aerial hunting of wolves, actress Ashley Judd delivered a broadside attack on the coal industry yesterday in Frankfort.

In a spirited speech before several hundred people who oppose strip-mining Appalachian mountains for coal, the Kentucky native railed against "the unchecked power of the coal companies" and lamented the loss of mountains that give the region's residents such a strong sense of identity.

"Let me be clear," she said. "Mountaintop removal mining is a tragedy. Mountaintop removal mining is a scourge on our land and on our people. It's killing our mountains — the very thing that produced us."

Judd was the highest-profile speaker at the annual "I Love Mountains" rally, held in support of a bill that's been bottled up in the House Natural Resources and Environment Committee for several years.

Sponsored by Rep. Don Pasley, D-Winchester, the bill would restrict waste rock blasted from the sides and tops of mountains from being placed in the upper reaches of hollows, where natural streams are being buried.

Rep. Jim Gooch, D-Providence and the committee's chairman, did not return phone calls to discuss the bill.

The coal industry opposes it.

"I love mountains, too," said Bill Caylor, executive director of the Kentucky Coal Association, when asked in a telephone interview to comment on the rally.

But he said the bill would shut down enough mining operations to kill thousands of jobs, resulting in a loss of about $350million in direct payroll to Kentuckians.

In her speech, Judd cited how coal companies had made similar claims before — when fighting previous environmental or occupational safety reforms.

But now, she said, "the coal companies are bigger, badder and richer than ever."

U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth, D-Louisville, said in an interview that he plans to introduce a bill in Congress to restrict the damage from mountaintop removal mining.

"We're going to put an end to this. We are going to stop this abomination on God's green Earth," Yarmuth said.

"If they don't listen to us in Kentucky, we'll take it (the battle) to Washington, D.C.," said Teri Blanton, a leader in the social justice group Kentuckians For The Commonwealth, which organized the rally.

In her speech, Judd talked about her family's roots in Eastern Kentucky, stretching back eight generations.

"I am very proud to be a hillbilly," she told the crowd, also mentioning her passion for University of Kentucky basketball.

Judd's recent clash with Palin, the former GOP candidate for vice president, gained widespread media attention after she worked with the group Defenders of Wildlife on an Internet video that criticized Alaska's wolf-control program, which is intended to increase the population of moose and caribou.

Reporter James Bruggers can be reached at (502) 582-4645.

http://www.courier-journal.com/article/20090218/NEWS01/90218005

Mining advocates dislike limits in copper-mining bill

Minnesota lawmakers plan today to introduce legislation that would establish new rules for how copper mines would operate in the state, including how they would handle environmental issues after the mines close.

By: John Myers , Duluth News Tribune

Minnesota lawmakers plan Thursday to introduce legislation that would establish new rules for how copper mines would operate in the state, including how they would handle environmental issues after the mines close.

The rules would prohibit the state Department of Natural Resources from issuing permits for mines if long-term plans foresee ongoing water-treatment issues after the operations close. At particular issue is acid runoff caused when high-sulfur rock is exposed to air and water in the mining process.

“Everyone wants jobs, especially these days. And if they can do it right, there will be [copper mining] jobs,” said Rep. Alice Hausman, DFL-St. Paul. “But this is a different kind of mining. When water runs off iron ore mines, you get rust. When water runs off copper mines, you get sulfuric acid.”

The new rules also would require that money be set aside before operations begin to cover all possible costs of closing mines and restoring any environmental damage caused by mining and processing.

Frank Ongaro, executive director of Mining Minnesota, a coalition of copper-mining ventures, said some elements in the legislation, such as requiring financial assurances for mine closure, already exist in state rules. But he said the requirement prohibiting ongoing treatment will kill any copper mine proposal.

“We’re extremely disappointed in this legislation,” Ongaro said.

Ongaro said the Legislature should stay out of the issue and allow state agencies to enforce existing laws and rules.

“No additional restrictions are necessary,” Ongaro said.

Supporters of the legislation, including the Friends of the Boundary Waters and the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, say the rules aren’t a moratorium on copper mining but require that any mines operate responsibly without leaving a polluted legacy.

“Wisconsin has a law that’s an effective moratorium on this kind of mine. And there are some environmental groups in Minnesota that would like us to do that. But we aren’t going that far,” Hausman said. “We’re just saying taxpayers will not be left holding the bag for millions of dollars of cleanup long after the company is gone.”

While the legislation would affect any development for copper or so-called nonferrous mining, its first target is the PolyMet mine and processing plant.

PolyMet proposes to invest $600 million in the project that would mine near Babbitt and process the copper, nickel and other precious metals at the site of the former LTV Steel Mining Co. taconite plant near Hoyt Lakes. The operation would employ about 400 people for the 30-year life of the mine and hundreds more during construction. It would be Minnesota’s first industrial copper mine.

While at least four other ventures are considering copper mining plans, only PolyMet has advanced well into the environmental review process. The company hopes to begin operations next year.

The state DNR and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have conducted a joint draft environmental review of the PolyMet proposal that was due last year but still has not been released. The draft has been delayed as regulators seek more detail on how the company will deal with lost wetlands, mine waste and acid runoff.

Even after the review is complete, the company still must apply for specific permits to mine, as well as air- and water-pollution permits.

A PolyMet spokeswoman could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

While iron ore mining has generally avoided environmental controversy, conservation groups are sounding warnings about copper mining. Because copper is locked in rock that is usually high in sulfur, that sulfur often is released when it is exposed to air and water. That acidic runoff can kill organisms in streams and has been a problem at many of the world’s copper mines through history.

But PolyMet officials say that won’t be a problem at their mine because sulfur concentrations are so low. Moreover, the company plans to store waste rock on special membranes to capture any runoff. The company also plans to treat water as it leaves the mine.

While the company holds mineral rights to the land where the mine is proposed, it does not actually own the land. The U.S. Forest Service still has the title to the property. PolyMet has been negotiating to buy private land in the vicinity and then trade that land to the Forest Service. But that process is slow because it involves dozens of other private landowners, said Jim Sanders, supervisor of the Superior National Forest.

PolyMet also has said it has considered legal action against the Forest Service but so far has not pursued that option. Legislation in Congress to allow the Forest Service to sell the land directly to PolyMet has not advanced.

http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/article/id/112698/

CEO: Coal project on track

By PAUL LORENZ

paul.lorenz@mcleansborotimesleader.com

McLEANSBORO — The chief executive officer of the company working to start a coal-mining operation in Hamilton County doesn’t foresee any significant delays in obtaining a mining permit from the state, he said.

“It used to take six months,” White Oak Resources CEO Mike Tracy said Friday. “I think that (time frame) has extended out some, but we still expect to get (the mining permit) by midyear. I’m working with state agencies to get it done.”

In a related development, Hamilton County Board on Friday voted at an emergency meeting to extend the closing date with White Oak on some coal reserves held by the county as the company works toward closing on a lease agreement with Sustainable Conservation Inc. for its coal reserves here.

In September, White Oak filed for a permit from Illinois’ Office of Mines and Minerals for White Oak Mine No. 1. A company announcement in October said permitting was expected to be complete in the second quarter of 2009, at which time construction would begin on the shaft, slope and surface facilities.

Last week, however, state Sen. Gary Forby said the Illinois Department of Natural Resources — which includes the Office of Mines and Minerals — would be taking up to two years to issue permits.

“This is unacceptable,” Forby, D-Benton, said in a news release. “There are people in my district who need the jobs these mines would create. In the past, it has only taken six months to get a permit. I don’t understand why it should take two years now.”

White Oak plans to build two longwall mines, one northwest and a second northeast of McLeansboro, and the company has a third mine area set up southeast of the city, the company has previously announced.

Forby said the proposed mines would potentially be eligible for federal stimulus money.

“I’ve been told that Illinois may qualify for up to $11 million of federal money for the Department of Natural Resources,” he said. “To lose that funding and the new jobs it would create over technicalities and paperwork seems almost criminal.”

White Oak anticipates bringing more than 300 construction jobs to the area and approximately 375 permanent jobs per mine at full production.

“I think everyone wants to see this go through because it means so many jobs for this county,” Tracy said Friday.

The County Board’s action Friday came after Tracy asked that the board go ahead and close with White Oak on the county’s coal reserves in the Sustainable Conservation area. He assured the board that White Oak is “in the process of closing” with Sustainable and presented a letter to that effect.

The agreement between the county and White Oak calls for a coal reserve lease with Sustainable to be in place before the county leases its coal reserves in that area.

Title work has taken longer than anticipated, delaying the closing with Sustainable, Tracy said.

The County Board unanimously agreed to extend the closing date 120 days with payment of $5,000 from White Oak to do so.

http://www.mcleansborotimesleader.com/local/local_story_049141928.html

Proposed Coal Plant Finds Opposition

Melissa Webster

by Adam Lynch
February 18, 2009

Opposition is mounting against a proposed 582-megawatt coal gasification plant in Kemper County that could increase Mississippi ratepayers’ utility bills by 15 percent.

Mississippi Power Company filed a Jan. 16 certificate of public convenience with the Mississippi Public Service Commission, asking for permission to begin proceedings that could eventually set aside 48,000 square miles of Kemper County land for lignite coal-mining, and construction of a lignite coal-burning plant using technology that currently does not exist.

“This plant will diversify our fuel sources and will produce energy at lower and more stable costs than any other fossil fuel option,” said Anthony Topazi, Mississippi Power president and chief executive officer in a statement.

“By creating an additional fuel alternative—Mississippi lignite—this project creates significant energy cost reductions for our customers, such that over its life, the energy savings more than offset the cost of building the plant.”

The Mississippi Sierra Club has joined the AARP and Kemper County residents in opposing the $2.2 billion proposal.

Mississippi Power says the proposed integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) plant, located near Liberty, will sequester 50 percent of its carbon emissions, making the plant eligible for federal funding, but Sierra Club organizer Louie Miller said the technology currently only exists in “some Madison Avenue advertising guy’s imagination.”

“They’re promoting this myth that coal is clean, but the bottom line is there is no such thing as clean coal, period,” Miller said. “The thing with lignite is that it’s wet. It’s a crappy, low-grade form of coal, with the same BTU value as wet firewood. It’s not a desirable fuel source, but what they’re banking on is the transportation savings because they’ll build a burning facility right next to the mine. There is no IGCC facility in this country, and this thing is going to put 15 billion pounds of CO2 a year into the atmosphere, not including asthma-related particulates.”

The company claims to be “in preliminary discussions” with a firm that has expressed interest in purchasing the CO2 produced by the plant to inject into near depleted oil fields pushing more oil high enough for extraction. But oil companies, according to business journals, are taking a hit this year with falling gas prices and likely are not seeking new investments into technology such as carbon sequestration.

Kemper County resident Barbara Correro, whose property will be directly affected by the proposed plant, is furious at the prospect.

“Mississippi Power’s Sept. 22, 2008, DOE (Department of Energy) federal register document shows they’re going to dam up my Chickasaw Way Creek. They’re going to pump 6 million gallons of water out of an aquifer every day to wash the coal, which will drop our well water,” Correro said. “They’re going to destroy this whole area. They’ll pollute the whole area and then drive me off to the city. I’m fighting this. I’m fighting it hard.”

Mississippi Power claims on the application that the plant will create approximately 1,000 jobs at the peak of the construction phase and approximately 260 to 280 permanent jobs in the power and mine facilities, as well as increased state and local tax revenues, but AARP legislative lobbyist Walter Howell said senior citizens are worried about the new financial burden the plant will put on customers with fixed incomes.

The Mississippi Legislature passed a bill during the 2008 legislative session that allowed Mississippi power companies to raise customers’ rates to finance the construction of new energy plants, including a nuclear reactor near the coast and two additional coal plants. The bill altered state law in that it raised the possibility of charging customers’ before the new construction even begins.

Mississippi Power estimates customers’ annual retail rates to increase 4 percent in 2011, 5 percent in 2012, and another 6 percent in 2013, with the possibility of a 4 percent decrease in 2014 and further reductions in subsequent years.

A flurry of fighting followed HB 2793 all the way from its committee passage to the governor’s desk, and Howell said the law could sting customers if the Mississippi Public Service Commission OKs the pre-pay clause.

“We feel that the responsibility for financing the construction needs to be on the company and its shareholders, and that customers should not have to serve as the bankers for the company,” Howell said, adding that he expected customers’ electric bills to jump $10 or $20 a month.

In addition to forcing customers to finance a new power plant, HB 2793 also makes no provisions for reimbursement should the plant never reach completion. And judging by recent events, plans for similar plants have a habit of collapsing.

The New York Power Authority announced it was halting plans for a 680-megawatt IGCC plant clean-coal facility in western New York last July. NYPA officials said the electricity produced by the plant would be too expensive specifically because of the same IGCC technology Mississippi Power is proposing to use in Kemper County.

Southern Company, the parent company for Mississippi Power, announced in 2007 that it was canceling construction of another IGCC plant in Florida. Southern Company said in a 2007 press release that the decision was driven by continuing uncertainty surrounding potential state regulations relating to greenhouse gas emissions.

One continuing uncertainty is whether or not the new president’s administration will recognize carbon emissions as a pollutant. President Barack Obama told voters during his 2008 campaign that he believed increased carbon emissions were raising the Earth’s temperature. The Bush administration refused to acknowledge the issue and ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to ignore CO2 as a pollutant, but Miller said times are changing.

“The last thing EPA Administrator Steven Johnson did before the door hit him on the ass was to issue a memo, as part of a review for a proposed coal-fired power-plant expansion in Utah, which kicked carbon dioxide from the list of pollutants the government had to regulate under the Clean Air Act. But the courts are already saying that they’re not accepting his version of reality,” Miller said.

Mississippi Public Service Commissioners Lynn Posey and Brandon Presley refused to offer their approval or disapproval of Mississippi Power’s request, which they will hear in April. Presley said he was nervous about the pre-pay clause of the application, however.

“That part of it just gives me heartburn,” Presley said. “That’s something that we’ve got to closely look at because it deserves scrutiny. It deserves proper attention because they’re trying to charge ratepayers for something that they ain’t got, yet. It would be like you being asked to pay for something up front that you don’t have. It worries people, but I’m not making any predeterminations yet.

http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/index.php/site/comments/proposed_coal_plant_finds_opposition_021809/

Pittsylvania County to look at uranium mining ban

Published: February 18, 2009

The issue of uranium mining has been gathering steam and moving closer to the forefront of localities’ meeting agendas lately.

Two Pittsylvania County towns — Gretna and Hurt — have passed resolutions on uranium mining, and Chatham is considering updating its own.

Tuesday night, it was a case of dueling resolutions during the Pittsylvania County Board of Supervisors’ regular meeting. Chatham-Blairs Supervisor Hank Davis wrote a strongly worded resolution, while County Administrator Dan Sleeper’s version was watered-down and more magnanimous toward the Virginia Coal and Energy Commission. Supervisors approved Davis’ resolution by a 7-0 vote after rejecting a proposal for a combination of the two by a 4-3 margin.

In addition, Karen Maute, an outspoken opponent of Virginia Uranium Inc.’s plans to mine and mill a 119-million-pound uranium deposit at Coles Hill, asked the board to consider banning the practice in Pittsylvania County during the meeting. She also proposed that the county look at updating and enforcing its mineral tax.

Board Chairman Coy Harville, who represents the Westover District, said Wednesday that the board’s legislative committee would consider the ideas in March or April. If committee members approve, they would take the matter to the board.

Harville declined to comment on the likelihood of a countywide ban.

“We haven’t even discussed it yet,” Harville said, adding that the board’s focus is its upcoming proposed $225.6 million budget.

Patrick Wales, VUI spokesman and geologist, blasted the prospect of a uranium mining ban in the county and said he couldn’t believe someone would propose banning an industry that would deliver jobs and money to the area during an economic downturn.

As for the minerals tax, Harville said during the meeting that Maute’s idea “is something that’s open-minded that we should be looking at.”

Harville said Davis’ authorship of a resolution without telling the board ahead of time was “sneaky.” However, Harville said he voted for it because the resolution, when given to the Coal and Energy Commission’s Uranium Subcommittee, won’t make much difference anyway.

“It’s just a piece of paper,” he said.

Harville, who had initially voted for the combined resolution before supporting Davis’, declined to reveal his opinion of uranium mining, saying instead there’s a state moratorium on the practice.

Davis said a countywide ban on uranium mining and milling probably won’t happen.

“I don’t think it’s real likely,” Davis said. “I’m not altogether sure we have that authority.”

Virginia is a “Dillon rule” state, meaning state law supersedes that of localities. The town of Chatham mulled implementing a chemical-trespass ordinance in case uranium mining takes place at Coles Hill six miles northeast of Chatham, but the attorney general told town officials it could not stand.

As for the mining resolutions proposed Tuesday night, Davis’ version calls for a study to determine that no harm will come to the county, its businesses, institutions, environment or residents before the moratorium is lifted and VUI’s plans are approved. Davis also said a study shouldn’t base its findings on a mere cost-versus-benefit approach. Sleeper’s resolution mostly expresses thanks to the Coal and Energy Commission for undertaking a study and holding a public hearing on the issue and asks that the board’s “highest concern that the safety and welfare of the people and property in Pittsylvania County remain unharmed and undamaged by uranium mining … ”

During Tuesday’s meeting, Dan River Supervisor James Snead said he liked both and proposed the combination resolution.

“I don’t see much difference,” Snead said. “Is there some way we can combine them?”

Callands-Gretna Supervisor Fred Ingram said he couldn’t see much difference between the two either.

Tunstall Supervisor Tim Barber said he thought Sleeper’s version was stronger.

The board ended up defeating Snead’s idea and unanimously backing Davis’ proposal.

Walt Coles Jr., executive vice president of VUI, said the company would have supported either resolution and said Maute’s mineral tax idea is a good one.

“We want to spread the wealth potential of this resource,” Coles said.

Coles also said tax revenue to the county from mining would offset drops in sales tax revenue and other revenue from the faltering economy.

Wales said he respects the localities’ resolutions and said they play a valuable role in determining whether uranium can be safely mined and milled in the state.

“We’re supportive of an open, honest discussion,” Wales said. “To make sound decisions, we need an honest, independent scientific study.”

http://www.godanriver.com/gdr/news/local/danville_news/article/pittsylvania_county_to_look_at_uranium_mining_ban/9166/

Mining not shown to have environmental benefits

February 18, 2009 by Opinions

Nate Waters’ column that appeared in the Jan. 29 Kernel, “Despite negative publicity, mining plays an essential role in our lives and may have positive impact on environment,” is vastly wrong in his view of mining. The key word in this article is “may.” There is not a doubt in my mind that mining doesn’t play an essential role in a person’s everyday life, but suggesting that mining has a positive impact on the environment is ridiculous.

Claiming that mining is actually beneficial to the environment may help people sleep better at night, but it is not true. Mining obviously has its economic benefits, but environmental benefits are quite non-existent in my opinion. I took an introduction to environmental geology class last semester, and I believe that the impacts of strip mining are not positive.

To reference the information I was given in my class last semester, strip mining leaves the land scarred, creates pit lakes, mine waste and the risk for water pollution is very high. The most frightening part is that in the end, it will be us, the average American, that will pay for this damage.

If a massive leak in a pit lake created by the mining occurs, most companies are not adequately covered by insurance to pay for it. The American taxpayer ends up paying for the costs of cleanup. Despite the monetary costs, the detrimental effects on the environment are by far the worst. The acidic pit lakes created by mining are highly damaging to the fragile ecosystems surrounding. We are blinded by the economical benefits, but Americans are just running on borrowed time. The environmental effects need to be recognized, and dealt with before it is far too late.

http://kykernel.com/2009/02/18/mining-not-shown-to-have-environmental-benefits/

Other News – India

Nyaya Panchayat Bill

17:36 IST

Lok Sabha

Shri Mani Shankar Aiyar, the Minister of Panchayati Raj informed the Lok Sabha in a written reply today that the Draft Nyaya Panchayats Bill had been forwarded to the State Governments/UTs and the Central Ministries concerned for their comments and had been recast based on their comments and circulated to the Central Ministries concerned and State Governments/UTs.

The reply stated that the objective of the proposed Nyaya Panchayat Bill was to provide a sound institutionalized forum at the grassroots level for alternative dispute resolution through mediation and conciliation with community involvement. The Nyaya Panchayats would aim at resolving disputes before they reach the formal justice system without eliminating the right to go to judicial forum in case of disagreement of any party with the outcome of alternative dispute resolution.

The Draft Bill provides for the establishment of Nyaya Panchayats at the level of each Village Panchayat or cluster of Village Panchayats which are proposed to be constituted through the election of the Nyaya Panchas by people residing in the area to which the jurisdiction of the Nyaya Panchayats extends. It provides for the reservation of women, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes to ensure their representation in the Nyaya Panchayats. The Draft Bill defines the civil, criminal and additional jurisdiction of Nyaya Panchayats.

SP/AS

http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=47635

Himachal Pradesh tribals demand forest rights

February 18th, 2009 - 1:51 pm ICT by ANI -

Kinnaur (Himachal Pradesh), Feb 18 (ANI): Tribals and other forest dwellers in Himachal Pradesh protested against non-implementation of forest rights in Kinnaur recently.
The protestors alleged that the government of Himachal Pradesh was not implementing the Central law Scheduled Tribes (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act that gave rights to tribals cultivating forestland for decades.
“The government is not serious about implementing the forest tribal act. The way it is scaring the tribal people that a legal action would be taken against them. We want to tell the authorities that it is implementation of law that we are seeking. We want to educate the tribals about their rights,” said Tikender Panwar, President, Himachal Kisan Sabha. The protestors said that the government indifference in notifying the law is what is creating problems for tribals.
“The law that was passed by the Central Government is not being implemented properly by the State Government. It is not educating people,” said Shersingh Negi, a tribal.
The protestors also demanded that the government should withdraw forest-eviction cases filed against the tribals.
The Central law was passed in 2006 recognising, once and for all, that tribal people are integral to the revival, survival and sustenance of the forest eco-system. It ensures livelihood and food security of the tribal people by making them the effective owners of the minor forest products besides cultivating rights over forestland.
Each state has to notify the Central law to make it effective in its territory. (ANI)

http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/india-news/himachal-pradesh-tribals-demand-forest-rights_100156531.html

Women Also Perpetrators in Trafficking: UN

New Delhi | Feb 18, 2009

While women are usually the main victims of human trafficking, they also play a key role as "perpetrators" in the offence, says the latest global report on trafficking by the United Nations.

In its recently released 'Global Report on Trafficking in Persons', the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) says that unlike in crime, in particular organised crime which is "typically" a male activity, large number of women are perpetrators in human trafficking contrary to the popular belief.

"It might be assumed that human trafficking, where violence and threats are key to do business, would likewise be overwhelmingly male dominated. But, surprisingly, the data on the gender of those convicted for trafficking in persons do not support this premise," the report says.

"The data gathered on the gender of offenders in 46 countries suggests that women play a key role as perpetrators of human trafficking. In Europe, for example, women make up a larger share of those convicted for human trafficking offences than for most other forms of crime."

The report, made after gathering information from 155 countries and territories, also say that men who are trafficked basically for labour exploitation "are relatively under-detected".

While trafficking mainly happens for sexual exploitation and forced labour, the UNODC said new forms of trafficking have also been discovered. This includes trafficking for domestic servitude, child begging, forced marriage, organ removal and even ritual killings.

Giving a region-wise perspective, the report said trafficking for begging was recorded in Western and Central Europe, whereas countries in West and Southern Africa identified cases of trafficking for ritual killings or mystic practices.

It said trafficking for organ removal was detected in Europe, the Middle East and South Asia. Trafficking for forced marriage was another form of trafficking reported in quite a few Asian countries.

"These types of cases were only recorded episodically but they remain alarming since they only represent reported cases and actual numbers could be higher," the report said.

On the issue of women as perpetrators in human trafficking, it further says, "In 30 per cent of the countries where the gender of the offender was known, more women were convicted (or investigated/prosecuted). In 28 countries, the women convicted ranged from 10 to 50 per cent."

It said the role of female offenders appears to be pre-dominant in the Eastern Europe and Central Asia region and "very significant" in other regions of the world, such as East Asia and the Pacific, and Central America and Caribbean.

http://news.outlookindia.com/item.aspx?654271

World Bank findings on rural water supply schemes

18:16 IST

Rajya Sabha

The Minister of State in the Ministry of Rural Development Shri Chandra Sekhar Sahu today informed the Rajya Sabha in reply to written question that the World Bank made a study in ten States on Rural Water Supply Schemes covering 38,033 rural households, which is 0.027 percent of the total rural households out of the 138,271,559 households listed as per 2001 census. The number of schemes covered in the sample for the study was 765 handpumps and 521 piped water supply schemes. The report has not been accepted by Government of India as the sample studied and analyzed in the report is not representative of all the water supply schemes of the country. The major findings related to percentage of functional efficacy of the current rural water schemes, flow of funds and expenditure incurred, performance of schemes, cost of supply, household coping strategies and costs, rural household willingness to pay and affordability thereof is annexed.

***********

Click Here For -: ANNEXED.

AKT/ST/-

http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=47640

State HRC notice to govt on plight of disabled children

19 Feb 2009, 0449 hrs IST, Ashish Tripathi, TNN

LUCKNOW: Taking suo motu cognizance of the report "Abandoned To Fate" published in The Times of India (TOI) on Wednesday highlighting the plight

of mentally retarded and multi-disabled destitute and lack of facilities such as shelter homes for them in the state, the UP Human Rights Commission (UPHRC) has issued notices to chief secretary and principal secretary, disabled welfare department, directing them to furnish a report to it within seven weeks on what steps the government has taken or proposes to take for the shelter, care, health etc of such persons.

In his order, Justice Vishnu Sahai, member, UP Human Rights Commission, described lack of basic facilities and shelter homes for mentally retarded and multi-disabled children and destitute as violation of the fundamental right to life guaranteed by the Constitution of India to all people and not just citizens.

The order said that it is well-settled that the right to shelter and health forms an integral part of the fundamental right to life guaranteed by Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. The order added that lack of basic facilities and shelter homes for disabled children and destitute also violates the preamble of the Constitution which provides for social and economic justice to all citizens.

Taking serious note of the various facts mentioned in the TOI report, the UPHRC order further stated that if mentally retarded and multi-disabled children and destitute are not getting basic minimum facilities and shelter, then that too is a violation of the directive principle of state policy contained in Article 39 (f) of the Constitution. The Article mentions that the state would endeavour to provide children all opportunities and facilities to help them develop in a healthy manner and in conditions of freedom and dignity. Further, children and youth should be protected against exploitation, moral and material abandonment, the Article adds.

The TOI report highlighted that while there are about one lakh mentally retarded children in the state, there are only two government shelter homes -one for boys in Allahabad and one for girls in Bareilly, with a capacity of 50 each. The report also said that the incidence of abandoning mentally retarded children is on the rise and since April 2006, 28 mentally retarded children have been found abandoned in Lucknow. Further, the report revealed that there are neither shelter homes nor any asylum for such children in UP. The report also brought to the fore that the centre for mentally challenged girls in the city is only meant for training and not a shelter home.

Justice Sahai in his order said that the commission found the case fit for taking a suo motu cognizance of the matter under section 12 (a) of the protection of the Human Rights Act 1993, under which provision has been made applicable to it by virtue of section 29 of the said Act. The commission took the TOI report on record and marked it as `A' for identification and directed its office to register a suo motu petition and issue notices to the government officers for pursuing the matter.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Lucknow/State_HRC_notice_to_govt_on_plight_of_disabled_children_/articleshow/4151583.cms

News & Views !!

Feb 19, 2009

19/02/09

Mining – India

Orissa to recommend OMC