External publications

Water and Mining

Schoderer, Mirja / Jampel Dell'Angelo / Dave Huitema
External Publications (2021)

in: Joseph W. Dellapenna / Joyeeta Gupta (eds.), Water Law, Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, 451-465

ISBN: 978-1-78347-699-2
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4337/978178536911
Information

The chapter investigates how international law and transnational policy frameworks for the mining sector account for and mitigate the negative impacts of extractive activities on water resources. Regulating the mining sector is complex because actors are highly diverse and commercial interactions associated with mining span the globe. Increasingly, transnational initiatives set rules and norms for ‘responsible’ or ‘sustainable’ mining and, increasingly, they articulate a commitment to safeguard water resources. In doing so, they often reference human rights or environmental safety as a guiding paradigm. The level of detail regarding mitigation measures and the robustness of the monitoring procedure vary greatly and, consequently, so does the potential of these frameworks to improve water governance in the mining sector.