Analysis commissioned by the European Commission
Greenland and the EU have chosen a partnership - for critical resources such as rare earths, but also for other metals such as iron or zinc. The cooperation between the Öko-Institut and partners from Belgium and Denmark was commissioned by the European Commission to investigate how the cooperation can be implemented in the most environmentally and socially acceptable way and at the same time be economically successful. "The experiences from planned and ongoing raw material partnerships show that intensive preparation is necessary for long-term cooperation", says Dr. Ing. Doris Schüler, scientist at the Öko-Institut, "the biggest challenges are different interests and needs." In the first step, the experts discussed with European industry representatives what further processing companies need. "The workshop has shown that European industry is very cautious with an active involvement in mining. Many companies prefer the pure import of raw materials to an active commitment to safe and sustainable supply, "explains Schüler. In addition, the fall in prices has pushed the issue of commodity security back into the background - "given that Europe largely covers its commodity needs from imports, this is very regrettable." According to the experts, Europe should be a major consumer of commodities take greater responsibility for sustainable mining. "It is hoped that politics and companies rethink and make new ways of working with commodity-producing countries," says Doris Schüler.
With regard to the environmental impact, the experts have analyzed the mining rights of Greenland. "The framework conditions there are very advanced, are based on the highest environmental standards and follow an exemplary holistic approach," says Schüler. But there is also a difficult point: the planned disposal of treatment slurries of two rare earth projects in lakes. "The Greenlandic authorities see this as a sustainable solution for a variety of reasons, but in Europe waste disposal in lakes is not allowed." In addition, the Oeko-Institut has looked at local conditions and in connection with the rare earth projects mentioned talked to authorities, operators and local environmental initiatives about the environment and environmental aspects.
Greenland as new raw material supplier for Europe? The experts are skeptical so far. "The conditions on the ground, for example, are adverse - for example with regard to the climate and the prevailing labor shortage," says Schüler. "It is also unfavorable for the EU that one of the two projects considered wants to set up substantial parts of the process chain in China and thus one independent raw material production in the EU is not possible and the product can not be described as native. " cw
Source: http://www.oeko.de/e-paper/green-economy-nachhaltigkeit-neu-verpackt/#c5278
