Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
of these
garimpeiros
act in a “not legalised'' way - which means they do not have
permission from the National Mining Agency (DNPM) and proceed without license
from the state environmental agency. This lack of legalisation is due in part to the
DNPM protracted licensing process. More than 19,500 requests for permissions for
small-scale mining in the Tapajós region await an administrative decision. In 2007,
DNPM began to accelerate the processing of these permit applications. Recently (in
February of 2010) the DNPM handed out 2,083 permits.
In addition, small-scale miners report other obstacles in obtaining the required
licences. Distance is a problem faced by small-scale miners, as the offices of the Federal
and State authorities are located in Itaituba, Santarém and Belém, at least a 1-, 2-
or 3-hour journey by plane respectively. Furthermore, miners must hire a geologist
for the compulsory environmental impact study and plan for recovery of the mined
area. Such requirements are very costly and time-consuming. As a result many people
continue to work without all of the documents in place, sometimes even facing the
risk of imprisonment or the confiscation of machinery and equipment. At the same
time, however, proper enforcement of the law proves to be difficult for the responsible
authorities.
8.6 CONCLUSION
Each of the three study sites in the small-scale gold mining regions has shown that
people are creative agents when it comes to using and mixing, at times simultaneously,
different legal systems. We have furthermore seen examples of how legal systems that
exist together, engage with and thus influence each other. It helps us understand how
mining cultures and efforts of authorities to manage conflicts surrounding small-scale
mining work out. The engaged legal systems reveal conflicts between stakeholders
at different levels, but also show how legal systems may engage with each other to
avoid, mitigate or resolve conflicts. A comparative, deeper understanding of legal
pluralism in small-scale gold mining allows for the development of mining policies
that are relevant to miners and reflect the daily realities of small-scale gold miners.
At present, state efforts to regulate small-scale gold mining are often confronted by
resistance and incompliance on the part of miners. Likewise, customary rights are
not only disrespected by authorities, but also by contenders of access to the gold
rich soils. It is our contention that legal systems and related policies that incorporate
customary rules, local law, and miners' law have greater chances of conflict solution.
This conclusion is also drawn in other situations of legal pluralism, where researchers
have, for example, found that it is a resource for the co-management of fisheries (Jentoft
et al. 2009).
The three cases are different in scale and historical context. The Suriname case is
specific due to its discussion of the confrontation between a small Maroon community
and a large-scale mine (the only one in the country). The Colombia case stands out
because the legal pluralism is part of the formal laws of the country, although in
the local practice the jurisdictions of the different systems clash and have different
weight in the decision-making processes of municipalities and Community Councils.
The Brazilian case shows how a customary system, in this case the miners' law in
Tapajós, is complemented by a whole series of formal regulations and laws. New
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