Identifying and Evaluating Impacts - Mining and the Environment: From Ore to Metal - page 435

Growth Inducement

The environmental assessment of a mining project has to be concerned with growth
inducement, arguably one of the main consequences of mining. Such induced growth may
be positive or negative depending on the point of view, and planned or unplanned, but the
topic is often treated superi cially. Growth inducement, dei ned as the relationship between
mine development and future growth within the project area, is difi cult to understand, to
predict, and to manage. The relationship is sometimes viewed as either one of facilitating
planned growth or inducing unplanned growth. Both types of growth, however, must be
evaluated because they may each have varying degrees of benei cial and harmful effects.
It is not difi cult to comprehend how mine development induces growth or develop-
ment in a localized fashion. Development of new housing complexes will be encouraged;
numerous cottage industries are likely to develop; providers of fresh produce, transporta-
tion services, and restaurants will emerge. Yet, it is commonly accepted that growth pat-
terns depend on a whole range of economic forces that are not only local, but also regional,
national, and in case of large mining projects even international in scope. As a consequence
no universally accepted standard analytical methods for analyzing growth inducement
have emerged. In fact, there is no single way of looking at the topic. The reality is that
induced development is the product of multiple social, economic, and geographic factors,
none of which is easily understood.
To analyze growth inducement, an answer has to be found to the question ' Will the mine
promote future economic or population growth, and if so, to what extent? ' Economic or pop-
ulation growth move forward, or are held back, mainly for economic reasons, although
social, political, and environmental factors sometimes play a part. An analysis of growth
and development should explain these reasons in the context of the proposed mine project
and any growth that would be affected by it, and why it is so. Because growth is by its
very nature a future event, conclusions require professional judgements, but these judge-
ments should be based on a thorough consideration of economic, social, political, and envi-
ronmental factors. The assessment should be more reasoned than merely a statement that
induced growth is inevitable.
It is important to realize that local governments as well as mining companies often have
limited control on growth rates and patterns. Uncontrolled growth is a common associate
of mine development, placing a heavy burden on local public infrastructure and admin-
istration. Slum areas or shanty towns developing near mines are obvious signs of uncon-
trolled growth, with all their associated adverse impacts, such as poor sanitation, health
risks, prostitution, and crime. Secondary effects from growth should be carefully consid-
ered since often they become disproportionately signii cant. Growth will, for example,
bring outsiders to the project area, add pupils to schools, increase sanitary waste load,
add trafi c to existing roads, and may eliminate habitats for plants and animals. If these
indirect impacts become so great that local communities are negatively affected by eroded
community cohesion, decreased access to schools, poor sanitation, deterioration of public
roads, or by a decline in local plant and animal populations, then these secondary effects
become important. Other indirect impacts of growth inducement include leapfrog devel-
opment, pressure for the development of environmentally sensitive lands, increased energy
consumption, changes in land prices, and perceived changes in quality of life. Often, these
indirect impacts can be discussed only in qualitative terms, and only direct impacts can be
quantii ed.
The discussion of growth inducement has to include governmental regional planning.
A project's compatibility with governmental planning (if such plans exist) is an important
consideration. Inconsistencies can become controversial, generating local opposition to the

Local governments as well as
mining companies often have
limited control on growth rates
and patterns.