Clarifying the responsibilities of districts and communes in mineral protection

(Baonghean.vn) - "It is necessary to clearly define the responsibilities of all levels of government, especially at the commune level; mineral planning and unlicensed areas must be public and transparent so that people can monitor and protect them...".

On the afternoon of August 14, the Provincial People's Committee held a meeting to listen to and give opinions on the draft Plan to protect unexploited minerals in the province. Comrade Dinh Viet Hong - Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee chaired the meeting; representatives of relevant departments and branches attended the meeting.

Nghe An is a province with rich and diverse mineral resources. However, illegal mineral exploitation activities in many localities are still complicated. Awareness, understanding and responsibility in mineral protection management of some local Party committees and authorities are still limited; inspection and punishment work is not thorough. Therefore, the management and protection of unexploited minerals is an urgent issue.

Comrade Dinh Viet Hong requested the Department of Natural Resources and Environment to collect opinions from the sectors for editing before submitting to the Provincial People's Committee for approval. Photo: Pham Bang

According to the draft plan, in the province, there are 206 areas where mines have been closed; 9 areas where mineral surveys and assessments have been conducted; 4 national mineral reserve areas; areas with mineral potential and prospects; 10 areas with scattered and small-scale minerals; 581 areas under local and central mineral planning... which are objects that need to be protected.

The goal is to strictly manage and protect unexploited minerals in the province; protect the landscape, environment, security and order and the lives of local people in areas with minerals. In addition, clearly define the responsibilities of heads of authorities at all levels in the management and protection of unexploited minerals, and strictly handle organizations and individuals who illegally exploit minerals.

The viewpoint of the plan is to strictly implement the State's policies, laws, and strategies in the management and protection of unexploited minerals. Only organizations and individuals are allowed to conduct mineral exploration and exploitation activities when they have been granted a license by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment or the Provincial People's Committee. Local authorities are not allowed to negotiate or allow organizations and individuals to illegally explore and exploit minerals in any form.

Illegal sand and gravel mining on Lam River is still complicated. Photo: Archive

At the same time, no organization or individual is allowed to take advantage of the implementation of investment projects or to take advantage of the permission to use land to illegally explore and exploit minerals. Resolutely handle organizations and individuals who engage in illegal mineral activities. The head of the state management agency is responsible for the management and protection of unexploited minerals.

To effectively protect unexploited minerals, the tasks and solutions to be implemented are to strengthen propaganda and dissemination of laws in various, appropriate and effective forms; inspection and punishment of illegal mineral activities; planning and licensing of mineral activities.

Contributing to the draft plan, Mr. Nguyen Truong Giang - Deputy Director of the Department of Construction expressed his opinion that it is necessary to clarify the role of the People's Committees at the district and commune levels in the task of protecting mineral exploitation. In addition, it is necessary to clarify the tasks of specialized forces. For example, traffic inspectors are only responsible for checking and penalizing vehicles carrying mineral materials if they are overloaded or oversized, but how can they check whether the minerals are licensed or not?

The representative of the Department of Construction said that it is necessary to clarify the role and responsibility of the People's Committees at the district and commune levels in the work of protecting and exploiting unexploited minerals. Photo: Pham Bang

Mr. Nguyen Huy Cuong - Deputy Director of the Department of Industry and Trade said that the objects of protection should be ranked in order of priority according to their importance in each field and region. Regarding the reasons for the many shortcomings in mineral exploitation management, Mr. Cuong said that special attention must be paid to companies and enterprises that use large ships to dredge sand on riverbeds, and the responsibility for protecting minerals must be clearly defined for the owners of the works...

Mr. Nguyen Hong Hai - Deputy Director of Nghe An Tax Department said that after the first round of comments, the draft plan to protect unexploited minerals has been more complete. However, according to Mr. Hai, in addition to clarifying the responsibilities of local authorities, it is necessary to publicize and make transparent information about the areas with minerals, the areas where minerals are allowed to be exploited, how to exploit them, and how much so that people can monitor and protect them together.

Regarding the implementation solutions, the representative of the Department of Justice said that the solutions in the draft are still general, not specific, and do not highlight the methods and plans to protect unexploited minerals. "For example, the dissemination of the law in many forms, what are the forms...".

After listening to the opinions of the departments and branches, the leaders of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment directly explained the related contents; at the same time, they requested the departments and branches to provide full and specific opinions so that the unit could synthesize and edit them appropriately and in accordance with regulations.

Concluding the meeting, comrade Dinh Viet Hong said that this is a new regulation in state management in the face of the complicated situation of illegal mineral exploitation. Accordingly, by the end of 2017, the Provincial People's Committee must issue a plan to protect unexploited minerals according to the Government's direction.

Regarding the contents of the plan, the Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee requested that the focal agency in the protection work be clearly stated. Regarding the content of implementation organization, it is necessary to separate the responsibility of the Commune People's Committee from the District People's Committee. Regarding the mineral objects that need to be protected, it is agreed with the draft but it is necessary to arrange them in order of importance. Regarding the comments from the sectors, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment tries to fully absorb them, edit the plan appropriately and then send them back to the sectors for final comments before submitting them to the Provincial People's Committee for approval.

Pham Bang