Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Mining projects with a history of
local empowerment and dialogue
generally have lower levels of
social risk.
dialogue generally have lower levels of social risk. True two-way communication leads to
greater benei ts for both the company and the host community. What is sought in environ-
mental assessment is that proponents go beyond the phase of informing. Proponents are
asked to clearly and honestly explain the mining project to affected people, to actively listen
to responses received, and to take their views into account in mine development. Truly par-
ticipatory practice in public involvement - shared decision-making - is usually not appro-
priate or practical initially, even when it might be desirable. It requires a level of skills that
need to be developed over time through capacity building and community development.
This chapter presents a brief historical perspective on public involvement, capturing the
main aspects that will lead to successful stakeholder engagement: (1) planning of stake-
holder involvement; (2) capacity building in the company; (3) identifying and engaging
stakeholders; (4) capacity building in the communities; (5) understanding benei ts and
risks of public involvement; and (6) common mistakes.
3.1 HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
In democratic societies we, the public, have at least in theory the right and the power to
decide on our future, and how we use natural resources to best suit our interests and needs.
The Right of Access to Information, Participation, and Justice
General provisions for public access to information, participation, and justice go back as
much as 14 centuries in Islamic Law (Ahmad 2002). The International Boundary Waters
Treaty in 1909 however was the i rst global treaty to include strong provisions for pub-
lic access to information and participation (Bruch and Filbey 2002). The Universal
Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 provided the kernels for generalized access to infor-
mation and justice as well as the right to participate.
In the USA, as in much of the West, the 1960s and 1970s were marked by a participation
movement (Breggin and Hallman 1999). The Freedom of Information Act in 1966 gave
access to data and information held by government agencies. The National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 amongst its measures required public review of Environmental
Impact Statements (EIS). As mentioned in Chapter One NEPA has largely been the basis
on which environmental impact assessment world-wide has been based.
The voice of environmental concern was internationalized at the Stockholm Conference
in 1972 (UN Conference on the Human Environment). For the i rst time environmen-
tal non-government organizations (NGOs) played an important part. The follow-up con-
ference, the UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED or 'The Earth
Summit') held in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil in 1992, laid the foundation for public consulta-
tion in environmental assessment as we now know it.
Agenda 21, Chapter 8, Section 1 calls on governments to seek broader public partic-
ipation in policy making and decision-making for sustainable development. Section 3 is
devoted to the strengthening of the roles played by the principal social groups: women,
children and young people, indigenous populations; NGOs; local government; workers
associations and unions; business and industry; and the scientii c and technological com-
munity (NCEDR 2003).
Principle 10 states:
'Environmental issues are best handled with the participation of all concerned citizens,
at the relevant level. At the national level, each individual shall have appropriate access
The UN Conference on
Environment and Development
in 1992 laid the foundation
for public consultation in
environmental assessment as we
now know it.
 
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