Round tables

Round tables with conclusions of high level stakeholders panel Re(mining) extractive waste – where should we go?

Within the H2020 NEMO, CROCODILE and TARANTULA projects, stakeholders panel meetings took place, in which a highly diverse audience from industry, academia, civil society, governments and international organizations discussed the societal implications and the socio-economic impacts of the valorization of extractive waste. Next to techno-economic factors, these considerations are key to determine whether the (re)mining of extractive waste will be able to be successful or not.

The outcomes of this stakeholders panel will be used to draft robust policy recommendations for the European Commission with respect to revalorization of extractive waste in a circular economy. At the (Re)mining symposium, the conclusions of the stakeholder panels will be presented at round tables in order to receive feedback from the symposium participants.

Six stakeholder panel events took place under the format of High-Level Expert Panels. In the first three events, different perspectives of the Social License to Operate (SLO) topic were explored in the context of extractive activities. The question for the first panel in June 2019 was how to Ensure the Social License to Operate concept is adaptive and resilient. In the second panel in July 2019, the International Resource Panel (UN) presented its concept “Sustainable Development License to Operate” (SDLO), which goes beyond the traditional approach of SLO. In September 2019, the SLO approach used in the Horizon 2020 project “SecREEts” was explained.

During the Raw Materials Week of 2019, a debate was organized about the public acceptance of mining and recycling in Europe, and in March 2020, the analysis was extended towards how the metal supply challenges the green transition.

Finally, in March 2022, after an extended period of Covid-19 related restrictions, the last discussion focused on the extension of a Eurocentric to a global perspective on the revalorization of Mining Tailings.

The NEMO, CROCODILE and TARANTULA projects have received funding from the European Union’s EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation Horizon 2020 under Grant Agreement No 776846, No 776473 and No 821159.

More info: alberto.vazquez@catapa.be