Ready, set, close! Assessing social values and community readiness for mine closure and post-closure transitions
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Authors: Finucane, SJ Open access courtesy of:
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DOI https://doi.org/10.36487/ACG_repo/2415_14
Cite As:
Finucane, SJ 2024, 'Ready, set, close! Assessing social values and community readiness for mine closure and post-closure transitions', in AB Fourie, M Tibbett & G Boggs (eds), Mine Closure 2024: Proceedings of the 17th International Conference on Mine Closure, Australian Centre for Geomechanics, Perth, pp. 213-230, https://doi.org/10.36487/ACG_repo/2415_14
Abstract:
This paper discusses two aspects often overlooked in planning for mine closure and transition to the next use of a former mine site: the social values that drive stakeholder perception of closure risks and opportunities as well as stakeholder readiness to be involved in closure planning and implementation. It is well understood that closing a mine and transitioning to the next land use is more likely to be successful when stakeholder engagement is comprehensive and inclusive. If a company feels that stakeholder engagement has been done well and key community issues have been addressed, it would likely expect consensus on the proposed closure plan. However, this is not always the case. This can occur for various reasons, but is almost inevitable if there is a lack of understanding of, or alignment with, the social values that strongly affect community responses during closure engagement programs. Social values are usually a complex configuration of environmental, community, economic and governance characteristics which can vary between individuals and groups depending on their context, interests, beliefs and experiences. Review of publicly available closure plans indicates that these usually outline key stakeholder issues, but seldom elucidate the social values that shape or underpin them, or allow for changes in them to be monitored over time, even though these changes could be material to closure planning processes and outcomes. Twinned with understanding social values is assessing stakeholder readiness for a mine to close and move to its next use. This is because people will only support what they see as reasonable, logical and doable, and will base that judgement on their own sets of personal, professional and other values. Therefore, this paper not only outlines important considerations in defining and monitoring the social values that shape stakeholder concerns and priorities but also discusses the key factors influencing stakeholder preparedness to participate effectively in mine closure planning and implementation from the perspective of selected stakeholder groups.
Keywords: social values, socially inclusive stakeholder engagement, community readiness
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