Circular No. 25/2017/TT-BTNMT on the regulations governing the operation of the Committee for reviewing mine closure plans

CIRCULAR

Regulations on the operation of the Appraisal Council for Mine Closure Plans

review the plan to close down a mineral mine

 

Pursuant to the Law on Minerals No. 60/2010/QH12 dated November 17, 2010;

Pursuant to Decree No. 158/2016/NĐ-CP dated November 29, 2016 of the Government detailing the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Minerals;

On the basis of Decision No. 36/2017/NĐ-CP dated April 4, 2017, of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment;

At the proposal of the Director General of the Vietnam Geological Survey and Mineral Resources Administration and the Head of the Legal Department;

The Minister of Natural Resources and Environment promulgates this Circular regulating the operational regulations of the Appraisal Council for Mine Closure Plans,

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Circular regulates the operational regulations of the Appraisal Council for Mine Closure Plans as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 45 of Decree No. 158/2016/NĐ-CP dated November 29, 2016 of the Government detailing the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Minerals (hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 158/2016/NĐ-CP).

Article 2. Applicability

This Circular applies to state management agencies for minerals; organizations and individuals engaged in mineral extraction, residual mineral extraction, consulting on mine closure plans, and organizations and individuals related to the activities of the Appraisal Council for Mine Closure Plans.

Article 3. Appraisal Council for Mine Closure Plans

1. The Appraisal Council for Mine Closure Plans (hereinafter referred to as the Council) is a consultancy organization with the task of reviewing and evaluating the contents of mine closure plans as provided for in Clause 3, Article 45 of Decree No. 158/2016/NĐ-CP.

2. The Council shall be established by the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, the People's Committee of provinces and centrally governed cities (hereinafter referred to as the Provincial People's Committee) according to their respective authorities as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 6 of Circular No. 45/2016/TT-BTNMT dated December 22, 2016 of the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment on mineral exploration plans, mine closure plans, and sample reports on mineral activity results; model documents in the mineral activity permit dossier, the reserve approval dossier; procedures and formalities for mine closure (hereinafter referred to as Circular No. 45/2016/TT-BTNMT). The composition of the Council shall comply with the provisions of Clause 2, Article 6 of Circular No. 45/2016/TT-BTNMT.

3. Principles of Operation of the Board:

a) The Council operates based on the principle of collective discussion, transparency, voting, and decision-making by majority; in case of equal votes (50/50), the Chairman of the Council shall make the decision;

b) Members of the Council operate under a part-time system;

c) Members of the Council vote through comments and evaluations according to the form prescribed in Appendix No. 02 attached hereto.

4. Standing Office of the Council:

a) The Vietnam Geological Survey and Mineral Resources Administration is the Standing Office of the Council for the Appraisal Council for Mine Closure Plans within the licensing authority of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment;

b) The Department of Natural Resources and Environment is the Standing Office of the Council for the Appraisal Council for Mine Closure Plans within the licensing authority of the Provincial People's Committee;

c) Responsibilities of the Standing Office of the Council shall be carried out in accordance with Article 7 of this Circular.

Article 4. Responsibilities and Authorities of Council Members

1. Responsibilities of Council Members:

a) Participate in Council meetings. In case they cannot attend the Council meeting, they have the responsibility to send their critical review or evaluation opinion sheet on the mine closure plan to the Council's Standing Office one (01) working day before the meeting;

b) Review the contents of the mine closure plan and related documents provided by the Council's Standing Office;

c) Write evaluation sheets according to the form prescribed in Appendix No. 02 attached hereto;

d) Participate in other related activities when requested by the Chairman of the Council;

đ) Bear responsibility before the approving body and the law for the comments and evaluations made on the mine closure plan.

2. Authorities of Council Members:

a) Request the Council's Standing Office to provide information, documents, data, and issues related to the mine closure plan for research, review, and evaluation;

b) Express opinions and engage in direct dialogue with parties at the Council meeting; retain their opinions if they differ from the Council's conclusion;

c) Enjoy remuneration and other expenses such as food, accommodation, travel, and other costs as prescribed by law when participating in Council activities.

Article 5. Responsibilities and authorities of the Chairman of the Council

In addition to the responsibilities and authorities of the Council member as stipulated in Article 4 of this Circular, the Chairman of the Council also has the following responsibilities and authorities:

1. Deciding to convene meetings of the Council.

2. Chairing meetings of the Council in accordance with the provisions of Article 9 of this Circular.

3. Designating one Council member to perform the duties of the Secretary Member in case the Secretary Member designated in the Decision establishing the Council is absent unexpectedly.

4. Summarizing and processing opinions discussed at Council meetings and concluding the Council meeting.

5. Signing the minutes of the meeting; being responsible before the competent authority approving the mine closure project and before the law for conclusions made during the Council session.

6. Being responsible for the activities of the Council.

7. Delegating to the Vice-Chairman of the Council to perform the duties and authorities of the Chairman of the Council in case he does not attend the Council meeting.

Article 6. Responsibilities and authorities of the Vice-Chairman of the Council, Secretary Member, and Reviewer Member

1. Responsibilities and authorities of the Vice-Chairman of the Council:

In addition to the responsibilities and authorities of the Council member as stipulated in Article 4 of this Circular, the Vice-Chairman of the Council also has the responsibilities and authorities of the Chairman of the Council in case authorized by the Chairman of the Council according to Clause 7 of Article 5 of this Circular.

2. Responsibilities and authorities of the Secretary Member:

In addition to the responsibilities and authorities of the Council member as stipulated in Article 4 of this Circular, the Secretary Member also has the responsibility:

a) Sending files, documents, and review forms; evaluation sheets of the mine closure project to members of the Council;

b) Reporting to the Chairman of the Council on the main contents of the file, the mine closure project, and summarizing the opinions of the Reviewer Members;

c) Announcing the opinions of the Reviewer Members or relevant agencies in case the Reviewer Members or representatives of relevant agencies do not attend the Council meeting;

d) Recording fully and truthfully all opinions discussed at the Council, the conclusions of the Chairman of the Council; summarizing the evaluation sheets of the Council members; drafting and signing the minutes of the meeting to be submitted to the Chairman of the Council after the meeting ends.

3. Responsibilities and authorities of the Reviewer Member:

In addition to the responsibilities and authorities of the Council member as stipulated in Article 4 of this Circular, the Reviewer Member also has the responsibility:

a) Writing a review of the mine closure project according to the form prescribed in Appendix No. 01 issued together with this Circular;

b) Within seven working days from the date of receiving the files and documents related to the mine closure project, having the responsibility to send the review to the Standing Office of the Council; presenting the review at the Council meeting.

Article 7. Responsibilities of the Standing Office of the Council

1. Drafting and submitting to the competent state agency for decision on establishing the Council to review the mine closure project according to the form prescribed in Appendix No. 03 issued together with this Circular.

2. Proposing the Chairman of the Council to organize Council meetings and reporting issues related to the meetings.

3. Notifying and inviting Council members, legal representatives of organizations and individuals requesting review and approval of the mine closure project, representatives of relevant agencies to participate in the Council meeting.

4. Notifying in writing the conclusions of the Council to organizations and individuals requesting review and approval of the mine closure project.

5. Checking and reviewing the mine closure project that has been revised and supplemented according to the conclusions of the Chairman of the Council.

6. Implementing settlement procedures related to the activities of the Council in accordance with the law.

7. Managing and storing files and documents related to the Council meeting.

Article 8. Conditions for convening the Council meeting

The Council's meeting shall only be convened when the following conditions are met:

1. There is a mine closure project prepared in accordance with Article 5 of Circular No. 45/2016/TT-BTNMT.

2. The Chairman of the Council or the Vice-Chairman of the Council authorized by the Chairman to chair the meeting is present.

3. At least two-thirds (2/3) of the total number of Council members and at least one reviewing member are present; among them, there must be sufficient comments and evaluations of the mine closure project from the reviewing members.

4. A legal representative of the organization or individual requesting the review and approval of the mine closure project is present.

5. The organization or individual has paid the review fee for the mine closure project in accordance with the provisions of the law.

Article 9. Procedure for convening the Council meeting

1. The Secretary member announces the decision to establish the Council and introduces the participants.

2. The Chairman of the Council or the Vice-Chairman of the Council authorized to chair the meeting.

3. The representative of the organization or individual requesting the review and approval of the mine closure project reports on the contents of the project.

4. The Secretary member reports on the main contents of the dossier and the mine closure project, and related issues.

5. The Chairman of the Council requests the reviewing members to present their comments on the contents of the mine closure project.

6. The Council members provide comments and evaluations on the contents of the mine closure project.

7. The representative of the organization or individual requesting the review and approval of the mine closure project clarifies the Council's comments and evaluations.

8. The Council members conduct discussions; attendees may make statements (if any).

9. The Secretary member compiles the evaluation forms of the Council members.

10. The Chairman of the Council announces the Council's conclusion in accordance with the provisions of Article 10 of this Circular.

11. The representative of the organization or individual requesting the review and approval of the mine closure project makes a statement.

12. The Chairman of the Council declares the end of the meeting.

Article 10. Content of the Council's Conclusion

1. The Council's conclusion clearly states the contents that meet the requirements, the contents that need to be revised and supplemented, and the results of the Council's comments and evaluations as stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article.

2. The results of the Council's comments and evaluations are expressed in one of the following cases:

a) Approved if all participating Council members unanimously agree to approve without requiring revisions or supplements.

b) Approved with revisions and supplements if at least one Council member agrees to approve while requiring revisions or supplements, except in the case provided for in point c of Clause 2 of this Article.

c) Not approved if at least half of the participating Council members do not agree to approve.

Article 11. Implementation Provisions

This Circular takes effect from October 23, 2017.

2. The Vietnam General Department of Geology and Minerals shall be responsible for guiding, inspecting, and monitoring the implementation of this Circular.

3. Provincial People's Committees, the Vietnam General Department of Geology and Minerals, provincial Departments of Natural Resources and Environment under the central government, and relevant organizations and individuals are responsible for implementing this Circular.

During implementation, if there are difficulties or obstacles, relevant organizations and individuals are requested to promptly report to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment for research and appropriate amendments and supplements./.