Cement, Energy and Environment

8 Bhanu Prakash Bhatnagar, Head Mining, Adani Cementa on Ltd,Adani Corporate House, Shan gram, Ahmedabad – 382421 (Gujarat) ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE MINING PRACTICES IN INDIA FEW APPROACHES ADOPTED ACROSS WORLD & IMPLEMENTATION OF NEW MINERAL POLICY Introduc on Sustainability has assumed considerable importance in developed countries which are extensively involved in mining prac ces, like Australia, Canada, USA, South Africa and Papua New Guinea etc. They take comprehensive view of sustainable development in mining which includes important dimensions such as local stakeholder engagement, socio- economic development in mining project areas and transparency in communica on with the stakeholders, along with environment. These developed na ons undertake mining ac vi es with all compliances with regulatory requirements and environmental laws that leads to lessen the impact of mining, and strictly implement it. These compliances include provisions for mine closure and associated reclama on and rehabilita on of mined land. In India, major mining companies have taken steps for socio- economic development projects in their mining areas. The Indian mineral industry comprises of large and small mines that are covered under public, private and informal sectors, covering most minerals being extracted. The public sector con nues to play a dominant role in produc on of various major minerals (like coal, lignite, petroleum, iron and steel, bauxite and aluminium) whereas a large number of small mines (including quarries for extrac ng minor minerals) are operated by private players in most states. These present difficult challenges for sustainable development as their financial, technical and managerial limita ons restrict their ability to take effec ve correc ve measures against the nega ve impacts of mining. Major mining companies use advanced technology, adopt comprehensive environment protec on measures, sensi se their personnel on sustainability issues and progressively try to improve their environmental performance. There are other large, medium and even small companies whose environment obliga on consists in strictly conforming to the prescribed legal provisions. Major threats for adop ng sustainable mining prac ces are illegal workings, where legal compliances are not observed to the fullest extent. It is reported that the illegal mining of sand is largely responsible for the environmental degrada on especially the river beds of all major rivers including Ganga and Yamuna. There are only li le checks for controlling illegal and rampant mining, whereas the poli cal interference has turned the situa on grim. Even legal mines flout norms and damage the environment considerably. Concerns for environmentally sustainable mining Today, the sustainable mining is the key to the security of raw materials and energy for many countries in the world. The sustainable development of mining of mineral resources is a major concern for today's global world, addressed to mining companies, people of science associated with mining and many other ins tu ons and organisa ons. Public awareness that the mineral resources are non-renewable assets, is, unfortunately, small and therefore improvements or changes to the situa on in this