Mining renewal » in metropolitan France? The controversial definition of a « responsible mine » model.

• In Event: STS Underground: Responsible and Sustainable Mining

Abstract

In 2012, the French minister of economy Arnaud Montebourg, followed by Emmanuel Macron, heralded the opening of an era of "mining renewal" (renouveau minier) in metropolitan France. After decades of decline, mining activities would again be on the rise. The government called for a comprehensive inventory of mineral resources, the delivery of exploration permits to junior companies, and launched a collective reflection on "responsible mining". This paper proposes to study the concept of "mining renewal" and explore its political consequences, through an analysis of the various controversies surrounding it. We use empirical material related to mining projects in French Brittany and the department of Ariège, and to the national initiative on "responsible mining". We focus on two areas of contestation, which delineates the political economy of "mining renewal", and the alternatives it has given rise to.
First, we discuss the notion of "responsibility" and its definition in the "responsible mining » national initiative. We show how environmental civil society groups, who participated to the initiative, contested the responsible mining model promoted by other actors involved in the initiative. Second, we show how the narration of the past is used to problematize future development. As past mining activities are considered as valuable heritage by some, historians are enrolled to participate in the production of a would-be responsible mining model. This mobilization of the past is opposed by other actors, who propose counter models for the valuation of local territories, and re-distribute the ability to define the objectives of « responsible mining ».

Authors

• Julien Merlin, Mines Paristech

• Yann Gunzburger, Ecole des mines de Nancy

• Brice Laurent, Ecole Des Mines De Paris