Minerals management a rough diamond

illustration photo

Currently, the Ministry of Industry and Trade is responsible for state management in exploiting, processing and using minerals, excluding minerals used for producing building materials and the Ministry of Construction is in charge of state management in exploiting and using minerals to make construction materials.

However, poor minerals exploitation management along and inadequate regulations have led to numerous wrongdoings in this field.       

According to the National Assembly (NA) Standing Committee’s Supervision Mission on executing policies and laws on managing and exploiting minerals connected to environmental protection, as of July 1, 2011, the country granted a total of 4,201 minerals mining licences, including 3,436 licenses for exploiting minerals used to produce building materials, accounting for 82.34 per cent of the total.

Phan Xuan Dung, chairman of the NA’s Science, Technology and Environment Committee, said the number of liciences granted by local governments was too large, badly affecting the environment and causing mineral resource losses. In three years, from 2005 to 2008, local authorities in provinces and cities granted 3,495 mining licenses, causing huge losses of mineral resources. Particularly, in localities having border lines and ports, export of crude minerals was mammoth.

“Cross-border export of minerals is happening at large scale and complicated. Meanwhile, the state is short of measures against the stituation,” Dung said.  

According to the Supervision Mission’s report, the number of mining businesses has increased rapidly, from 427 in 2000 to nearly 2,000 at present. Of which, enterprises exploiting minerals for making construction materials account for 1,200 and they are mostly small and medium-sized. Meanwhile, except PetroVietnam and the mining group Vinacomin, mining and processing technologies of these enterprises lag behind the world.

The report said more than 90 per cent of mining, processing and production minerals facilities violated regulations and laws on environmental protection. Between 2007 and July 2012, environmental police found 4,142 violation cases, of which, from 2011 and June 2012, 2,117 cases were uncovered.

In addition, in recent years, working accidents in mining industry makes up high rate, at 20 per cent of the total’s working accidents.

Facing a wide range of the above problems in the mining sector, the Supervision Mission proposed the government quickly complete minerals management mechanism from exploration, exploitation and processing to consumption.

“Inefficient mines must be closed and minerals which are neccessary for domestic use and scarce must be banned or limited for export,” Dung said.

Meanwhile, chairman of the NA’s Social Affairs Committee Truong Thi Mai said: “The role of state management in mining minerals must be clearer. There are state management apparatuses failing to reach the requirements as most of their staff are short in qualifications in geology and minerals.”

“Local authorities at all levels know about illegal exploitations of minerals such as sand, gold and stones in their locality. Therefore, specific responsibilities must be stipulated for local governments,” said Phung Quoc Hien, chairman of the NA’s Finance and Budget Committee. 

Regarding the licencing issue, NA Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung said: “Among more than 4,200 mining licenses were granted, it is necessary to find out which are right and which are wrong. The wrong ones must be revoked.”