Mining operates under a social licence that its benefits. should outweigh its negative impacts.

Responsible mine operators accept this, and they design their operations to be socially responsible.
However, to protect the environment and society against the negative impacts of mining, regulatory
frameworks are put in place to guide the assessment of mining proposals before mining commences.
These frameworks set out how judgments of the benefits to negative impacts should be carried out so
that they're transparent, justifiable, and based on best knowledge. There are a broad range of
environmental and social impacts which must be considered in the assessment of any mining proposal.

The environmental factors include

impacts on air quality-- dust fumes, gas emissions, etc.

Impacts on habitat, including temporary loss of or reduction

in the sustainable plant and animal biodiversity through

land destruction or possible permanent loss of or future

changes in habitat and biodiversity post-mining.

Impacts on aquatic habitat and ecosystems through depletion, contamination, or even total
destruction or relocation of waterways, and broader-scale impacts due to temporary or permanent
changes in the groundwater regime.

There are also social and societal issues to consider, including

the effects on water as a resource during and after mining,

the effects on air quality, noise and vibration impacts, visual impacts, impacts on existing public
infrastructure and utilities by mine-generated activities,

impacts on demographics and lifestyle, impacts on existing industries, impacts on the or loss of

cultural heritage,
impacts on or loss of natural heritage, and temporary or 9permanent loss of land to other uses
and exposure to undesirable mining-derived substances.

Environmental impact assessments are made by experts, including environmental engineers,

environmental scientists, regional planners, sociologists, and even archaeologists, who make
assessments of proposed mining activities on the basis of scientific knowledge, scientific models, and a
broad knowledge based on past experience. Ideally, these assessments should be undertaken by
independent consultants and then considered by regulators who evaluate the balance between the
benefits of mining and the negative impacts.

There are many steps in the approval process for a mining operation. For example, approval to undertake
mineral exploration is awarded by regulators through licences by a process of open competition. Every
activity during exploration needs to be planned and approved by government regulators. Even exploration
can have serious environmental impacts, which is even more unacceptable in the event that mining
doesn't follow.

After exploration, the miner will undertake an economic evaluation, and if the project is viable, they will
then proceed to project planning. During this planning stage, the proponent will liaise with many
government agencies involved in the project approval to ensure that they deliver the types of information
required by the agency. Once a project design is complete, it will be submitted to the government for
assessment. This is via a report commonly called a Review of Environmental Factors or an Environmental
Impact Statement. If the regulators find the assessment to be inadequate, then more studies may be

required on specific aspects. Impact statements are typically put out for public comment before any
mining approval is granted. If the mining impacts are deemed to be acceptable and justified by the greater
public good, then the mining proposal will be approved. However, there will usually be general conditions
placed on this approval in regard to the way the mine must be operated, interaction with local landowners,
and what cleanup is required during and after mine closure.

Commonly, approval conditions include requirements to establish committees between local communities
and mine operators to address any ongoing issues related to mine operation such as noise and dust that
might impact the local community.

Other conditions may require progressive rehabilitation of the mine sites, acquisition of offset lands that
are to be preserved in their natural condition to compensate for
the land lost to mining, contributions to communities and local government to compensate for the impacts
on local towns, acquisition of impacted land from local landowners, and adherence to specific upper limits
for air, water, noise, and visual pollution. There are usually compelling economic arguments to proceed
with the exploitation of a mineral deposit, but increasingly, it's becoming more difficult for these to
proceed without significant impacts on local communities and the environment. Good science and good
engineering are now, more so than ever, needed to underpin sound, rational decisions.