Thinking on the construction and development of green mine in China in the new era

With the 19th CPC National Congress as the symbol, socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era.  Building an ecological civilization is a thousand-year project for the sustainable development of the Chinese nation." The 19th CPC National Congress gave prominence to the construction of ecological civilization and ushered in a new era of green development. Mineral resources development activities should actively adapt to the requirements of ecological civilization construction, in strict accordance with the spirit of the 19th National Congress, with new development concepts to guide the construction of green mines, and strive to promote the coordinated development of mineral resources development and utilization and ecological environmental protection.

1 Progress of green mine construction in China

1.1 Development history of China's green mine construction

In 2003, the scientific concept of development was formally put forward, which provided the ideological and theoretical basis for the formation of the green mine construction concept. In 2007, the former Ministry of Land and Resources hosted the China International Mining Conference in Beijing with the theme of "Implementing Scientific Development and promoting Green Mining". In 2008, the former Ministry of Land and Resources issued the National Mineral Resources Plan (2008-2015), which put forward clear requirements for the development of green mining, and established the strategic goal of basically establishing a green mine pattern by 2020. In order to fully implement the planning objectives and tasks, the former Ministry of Land and Resources issued the Guiding Opinions on the Implementation of the National Mineral Resources Plan, the Development of Green Mining and the construction of green Mines in 2010 (Land Resources Development (2010) No. 119), and put forward the basic conditions for the construction of national green mines, which marks the official start of China's green mine construction.

In 2017, the former Ministry of Land and Resources, the Ministry of Finance, the former Ministry of Environmental Protection and other six ministries jointly issued the "Implementation Opinions on Accelerating the Construction of Green Mines" (Land Regulations [2017] No. 4), which has taken a solid step for the construction of green mines in China from concept to practice. In April 2018, the Ministry of Natural Resources publicized green mine construction specifications for nine industries, including non-metal, chemical, gold, coal, sand and gravel, petroleum, cement limestone, metallurgy and nonferrous metals, which became the first national green mine construction industry standard.

1.2 Green mine construction pilot results

In accordance with the principle of "pilot first and overall promotion", from 2011 to 2015, the former Ministry of Land and Resources selected 661 mining enterprises in 29 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) in four batches, involving oil and gas, coal, nonferrous metals, metallurgy, gold, chemical, building materials, non-metals and other industries, as state-level green mine construction pilot units. In the first batch and the second batch of 220 pilot units, most of them have completed the three-year pilot construction task, and 187 pilot units have completed the green mine construction pilot task, reaching the national standard.

In order to promote the transformation and upgrading of the mining industry and meet the requirements of green development, the pilot units have focused on reform and adjustment in reducing costs, improving efficiency, saving and intensive, improving the environment, and promoting the harmony of the mine site. First, promote "developing green mining and building green mines" to become the development consensus and pursuit goal of mining enterprises, competent authorities and industry associations; The second is to greatly improve the level of mining technology and equipment technology to achieve scientific and efficient utilization of mining resources; The third is to promote the ecological environment restoration in the mining area, and the land reclamation rate in the mining area is greatly improved; The fourth is to innovate the enterprise management mode, so that the mine construction direction is more clear, intelligent and scientific; The fifth is to strengthen the conscious awareness of mining enterprises to fulfill their social responsibilities, and pay more attention to the coordinated development of local economic construction in improving the employment environment, strengthening the construction of infrastructure and people's livelihood.

2 Basic conditions, requirements and standards for green mine construction in China

2.1 Basic conditions for national-level green mines

In August 2010, the former Ministry of Land and Resources "on the implementation of the National Mineral Resources Plan, the Development of green mining and construction of green mine guidance" (Land Resources Development (2010) 119) proposed the "National green mine basic Conditions", For the first time, the basic conditions for the construction of green mines are defined in nine aspects: "mine management according to law, standardized management, comprehensive utilization, technological innovation, energy conservation and emission reduction, environmental protection, land reclamation, community harmony, and corporate culture."

2.2 Green mine and green mining development demonstration zone construction requirements

In March 2017, the former Ministry of Land and Resources and other six ministries jointly issued the "Implementation Opinions on Accelerating the Construction of green mines" (Land Regulations (2017) No. 4), The green mine construction standards and the construction of green mining demonstration zones in 7 industries, including coal industry, oil and gas mining industry, non-ferrous metal industry, gold industry, metallurgy industry, chemical industry and non-metallic mining industry, have been clarified. According to the requirements, mining enterprises should strictly abide by the relevant laws and regulations of the state, in accordance with the mineral resources planning, industrial policies and basic conditions, and strive to achieve the construction requirements of five aspects: beautiful mining environment, environmentally friendly mining methods, economical and intensive comprehensive utilization of resources, intelligent and modern mining equipment management, and good social image. As a platform for mineral resource management system reform and innovation, the green mining development demonstration zone should exert its guiding role of the government, promote technological innovation, management innovation and system innovation, and concentrate on promoting the construction of green mines in the whole region. According to the six construction requirements of "optimizing the layout of exploration and development, promoting the restructuring of the mining industry, improving the overall efficiency of resource development and utilization, strengthening the protection and restoration of the geological environment of mines, actively exploring new ways of harmonious development of mines, and establishing a new mechanism for the development of green mining", by 2020, the construction of large and medium-sized mines in the demonstration zone will meet the requirements and standards for green mine construction. Complete the transformation and upgrading; Small-scale mines shall be managed in accordance with the requirements of green mine construction, so as to achieve the goal of reasonable layout and green mining.

2.3 China's green mine construction standards

According to the national green mine construction requirements, some local governments have successively formulated and introduced provincial construction standards and development requirements. According to incomplete statistics, Guangdong Province, Qinghai Province, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Gansu Province and other provinces (autonomous regions), Xinzhou City in Shanxi Province, Huzhou city in Zhejiang Province, Yushu Prefecture in Qinghai Province, Haixi Prefecture and other cities (prefectures) have successively issued green mine construction standards or construction norms. In April 2018, the Ministry of Natural Resources publicized the green mine construction standards for non-metal, chemical, gold, coal, sand and gravel, petroleum, cement limestone, metallurgy, and non-ferrous industries, requiring mining enterprises to adhere to the law in the process of running mines on the basis of implementing the concept of innovative, coordinated, green, open, and shared development. Mining authorities and mining enterprises also need to jointly build enterprise construction norms in line with six aspects of mining environment, resource development mode, comprehensive utilization of resources, energy conservation and emission reduction, scientific and technological innovation and digital mining, enterprise management and corporate image. These nine national green mine construction standards provide a strong policy support and institutional guarantee for China's green mine construction, so that China's green mine construction has entered a new stage of institutionalization, standardization and standardization.

3 Green mine construction experience

3.1 Foreign green mine construction experience

Western developed countries regulate, restrict and limit the damage to the environment caused by mineral resource exploration and development through the formulation of laws and regulations, the improvement of government functions, the establishment of special funds, and the payment of environmental deposits. The Australian government promulgated the Environment and Biodiversity Protection Act (1999), carried out environmental assessment and approval of mining projects that may have a greater environmental impact, and established a "mine closure fund" by collecting mortgage funds from mining enterprises, which is specifically used for the dismantling of facilities, ecological restoration and enterprise transformation after the closure of mines. The state government of the United States requires the Geological Survey to take the protection of the geological environment and the prevention and control of geological disasters as its main responsibility, through the mining enterprises to submit the Environmental impact statement, solicit and collect opinions from the relevant government departments and the local government and the public of the mining area, and review the possible environmental impact of the mine development and the prevention and control measures. The Canadian federal and provincial governments require mining enterprises to propose closure plans before issuing mining licenses, and adopt cash payment, asset mortgage, letter of credit, insurance, bonds and legal person guarantees to ensure the implementation of mine closure and reclamation systems. The British government implements environmental protection on mineral resource development in three stages: access management, that is, permit access system; Supervision and management, namely IS014000 environmental management system certification, pollutant emission and noise management, environmental management of exploration and development projects, preparation and release of environmental annual reports, etc.; Land reclamation, that is, abandoned mine reclamation.

In terms of ecological environment restoration in mining areas, the goal of Western developed countries is not only to plant trees and grass, but to establish a complete ecological service system that can maintain itself and operate well. Countries such as the United States, Germany and Australia have embarked on ecological restoration of mining sites in the 20th century. The United States demands that farmland and forests be restored to their pre-mining status, and that water erosion and toxic deposition be strictly controlled. Maintain surface and groundwater levels at their original level; Pay attention to the prevention and control of harmful and acidic substances; Prevent sediment from causing landslides and other disasters. Since the 1940s, Germany has paid great attention to minimizing the damage to the ecological environment caused by mining. In these countries, the land after exploitation is prepared or planted for comprehensive reclamation, and pay attention to the macro consideration of ecological environment changes and residents' requirements. Australia attaches great importance to the introduction of new technologies for the restoration of abandoned mining areas, and land reclamation has become an essential link in the mining process.

3.2 Work experience in local mineral resources authorities

There are three tin and lead-zinc tailings ponds in Pupu Mountain, Huangtian Town, Hezhou City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, which have been idle for more than 20 years, and the soil erosion is quite serious, and there are risks such as dam break, flood drainage system failure, tailings leakage, and dust hazards. In order to promote the restoration of mine geological environment, Hezhou Municipal Party Committee, municipal government and natural resources department built and developed football town by developing ecological health industry and utilizing the site advantages of tailings pond. The Football Town will develop an international first-class football town with the goal of building a national football winter training base, a national aquatic training base, a youth football training base, a youth football teacher training base, a football management training center, a football culture promotion center, and a football industry economic promotion platform. To build an internationally renowned ecological health industry and leisure sports tourism brand. After the completion of the first phase of the Pupu Mountain Football Town project, it can accept more than 1,000 people for training and competition, and it is expected that by 2020, it will receive 5,000 athletes annually, and the added value of the service industry will exceed 2 billion yuan.

Guangxi Pupushan football town does not occupy arable land and forest land, fully utilizes tailings ponds, turns the original earth "scar" into a magic, effectively reuses valuable land resources, and realizes a win-win situation of economic benefits and ecological construction benefits, which is worth learning and copy and promotion by mineral resources authorities around the country.

3.3 Green mine construction experience of the enterprise

In the first and second batch of 220 national green mine construction pilot units, 187 pilot units have completed the green mine construction pilot task and reached the national standard, and have obtained relatively mature green mine construction experience. In this paper, the third batch of national green mine pilot unit, China Petroleum Xinjiang Oilfield Company, Fengcheng oilfield operation area, they have established a set of green management system in four aspects, such as clean production, resource conservation, digital oil and gas field construction, and establishing a good image of enterprises.

In terms of cleaner production, they are constantly promoting and applying new technologies. As the country's largest super heavy oil production base, in order to achieve efficient development, they vigorously promote SAGD technology research and industrial application, compared with steam huff and puff mining, this technology has the characteristics of small footprint, high production per well, and high recovery. In heavy oil mining, a large amount of sewage is produced every day. Due to the high silicon content and salinity, it cannot be used efficiently. Through the application of silicon removal and salt removal processes, the silicon content and salinity are greatly reduced, and the reuse rate of water resources exceeds 92%, which greatly saves clean water resources. In order to reduce the impact of mining on air quality, the sealing technology of conventional heavy oil mining has been promoted, and new technologies such as the upgrade of the standard discharge of the weight 32 fluidized bed have been carried out.

In terms of resource conservation, they reduce emissions and reduce consumption to enhance the efficient use of resources. In order to achieve energy conservation and emission reduction, they strengthened energy consumption control, and in 2017, they saved 519,000 m3 of water, 3.17 million m3 of natural gas, 24,326 t of coal, and 19.37 million kW of electricity. h. In order to ensure the standard discharge, strictly implement the pollution reduction plan, layer by layer decomposition indicators, compaction management responsibility, wastewater, exhaust gas discharge rate of 100%. In order to protect the land resources, in accordance with the principle of "one reclamation for one development", the temporarily excavated and occupied land should be reclaimed in time.

In terms of the construction of digital oil and gas fields, the first oil and gas production Internet of Things demonstration project of CNPC was completed in 2014, achieving comprehensive control of the production process of 2 million tons of heavy oil, and significantly reducing safety and environmental protection incidents. The production automation data management system, oilfield three-dimensional geographic information system, steam injection boiler automatic control system, video surveillance and high-altitude lookout system have been built successively, which has improved the efficiency of production command and management, reduced the total number of employees, reduced the labor intensity of employees, broadened the perspective of safety and environmental protection supervision, and greatly boosted the construction of green mines.

In terms of establishing a good corporate image, Fengcheng Oilfield actively undertakes social responsibilities. The Baiyang River channel was dredged and dredged, the embankment was raised and hardened, and the production and life of the nearby residents were improved. Assisted the local construction, overhauled and renovated the 42 km highway from Ulhe to Alek Lake and from Ulhe to Xiazi Street, greatly promoted the local economic development; To the farmland and the oil Wells around the river, build anti-overflow DAMS and strengthen environmental protection measures; Thickening and jacking of river pipeline to prevent leakage; The implementation of the Devil City core scenic oil well exit, avoid major environmental risks, establish a good corporate image.

4 Problems in China's green mine construction

4.1 The concept of green mine construction is not firm enough

Under the background of ecological civilization construction, the construction of green mine is an inevitable choice for the sustainable development of mineral resources. However, due to factors such as immediate interest drive and long-term inertia thinking, the concept of green development has not really become the universal value pursuit of the whole society. Under the pressure of economic growth indicators, some localities and departments have not given enough attention to the construction of green mines in terms of policy formulation, capital investment, and facilities. Some mining enterprises also have the problem of not deep understanding of the realistic urgency of green mine construction, insufficient attention, and little investment, they have not formulated green mine construction planning and construction plans according to the green mine construction requirements and standards issued by the state, and have made essential human, material and financial investment. Therefore, to further strengthen the green mine construction concept of local governments and competent departments, mining enterprises and the whole society, and comprehensively enhance the enthusiasm and initiative of green mine construction is still an important task for the current and future period of time.

4.2 Difficulties in implementing green mine construction support policies

The former Ministry of Land and Resources and other six ministries and commissions jointly formulated the "Implementation Opinions on Accelerating the construction of green mines" (Land Regulations [2017] No. 4) proposed the implementation of mineral resources policy support, green mining land security, financial policy support, green financial support four types of green mine construction support policies. Up to now, most provincial natural resources authorities have formulated their own "green mine Construction implementation plan", and further clarified the four types of support policies. For example, Shandong Province, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and other provinces (autonomous regions) have made clear the specific situation of the transfer of mining rights by agreement. However, the support policies formulated in some regions are copied from the central documents and lack "personalized" content and supporting measures combined with local realities, which is not conducive to the smooth landing of support policies. Some mining enterprises still have the problem that the main responsibility is not strong, the policy understanding is not deep, that the green mine construction cycle is long, the investment is large, the return is slow, and the implementation of the support policy and the promotion of green mine construction are not taken as a major opportunity and inevitable choice to enhance the internal power of enterprises and realize the sustainable development of mineral resources.

4.3 The legal and regulatory system of green mine construction is not perfect

China's Mineral Resources Law, which came into effect in 1986, does not mention green development. With the needs of economic and social development and ecological civilization construction, as the superior law of green mining development related laws and regulations and supporting policies, the Mineral Resources Law must be revised and improved in accordance with the new development concept and the requirements of the new era. In order to make green mine construction "law-based and law-based", the state and some local governments have successively formulated and introduced national, provincial and municipal green mine construction standards and norms, but due to regional economic differences, resource development and utilization technology and resource environment carrying capacity differences, Governments at all levels, industry associations and mining enterprises should also work together to gradually improve the differentiated green mine construction standards and norms in different regions, different mineral species and different resource endowments. The state and local governments with legislative power should also raise the existing green mine construction standards, system norms and mature experience that have been tested in practice, reasonable operation and practical effectiveness into laws and regulations in a timely manner, build a complete, complete and systematic green mine construction laws and regulations system, and provide legal guarantee for the realization of green development and green utilization of mineral resources.

4.4 The application of new technologies in green mine construction is not widespread enough

"Technological innovation" is the basic condition of national green mine construction, "Opinions on the implementation of accelerating the construction of green mines" and "National green mine construction standards" have stressed the important role of intelligent modern, scientific and technological innovation, digitization and so on in green mine construction. But in fact, there are still a considerable number of mining enterprises, failed to adopt or fully adopt modern high-tech to promote the construction of green mines. On the one hand, the management concept of some mining enterprises can not keep up with the development of The Times, and the main consciousness of building green mines is not strong; On the other hand, some mining enterprises have a heavy historical burden, such as tailings accumulation, environmental problems, equipment aging, etc., and some traditional mining economic benefits have been hovering at a low level for a long time, enterprise development prospects are worrying, and the internal power of "adjusting structure and changing mode" is insufficient; On the other hand, some mining enterprises owe too much in innovation and research and development, and insufficient investment, talent shortage, and funding gap have become the key issues restricting the application of new technologies in green mine construction by these enterprises.

5 Suggestions on the construction of green mines in China

5.1 Firmly establish the concept of green mine construction and development

 Green development, has become a new era of strong sound and development theme, for China's green mining development provides a rare historical opportunity. The Ministry of Natural Resources takes "realizing the overall protection, systematic restoration and comprehensive treatment of mountains, rivers, forests, fields, lakes and grasslands" as the ultimate goal of green mine construction, which provides a strong organizational guarantee for the development of green mining. We must firmly establish the concept of coordinated and sustainable green development, and promote the harmonious development of green mine construction and local economy with the mode of joint consultation, sharing and joint construction. Efforts to promote the transformation of mining enterprises and constantly improve the development and utilization level of mineral resources are not only the need to deepen the supply-side reform, but also the need for green mine construction. Local governments, competent authorities and mining enterprises should effectively form the ideological consensus that "under the background of ecological civilization construction in China, green mine construction is the only choice for mining development, otherwise it can only come to a dead end". It is necessary to actively use advanced technology and concepts, build a green and efficient mineral development industry chain, and lock the direction of future mining development. As the responsible subject and practical practitioner of green mine construction, mining enterprises should continuously enhance the initiative, consciousness and firmness of green mine construction, and truly realize the major change of green mine from "I want to build" to "I want to build" in guiding ideology and management philosophy.

5.2 Ensure the implementation of green mine construction support policies

Local governments should identify and implement the spirit of the "Implementation Opinions on Accelerating the Construction of green Mines" of the six ministries and commissions, meet and focus points that are compatible with the promotion of local green mine construction, and formulate "plans" and "road maps" that are suitable for local conditions. Mining enterprises should fully understand the implementation of green mine construction support policy, is to implement the new development concept, promote the conversion of old and new production capacity, and enhance the specific practice of internal power of enterprises. First, it is necessary to fully understand the implementation of the green mine construction support policy, is to implement the new development concept, continue to deepen the supply side reform, and promote the specific practice of new and old production capacity conversion; Second, it is necessary to make full use of the existing national policies on land and mineral resources, while taking into account and connecting various mineral resource plans, and formulating green mine construction plans and programs suitable for local conditions; Third, we should increase the financial support for green mines, include the expenditure of ecological protection and restoration management means into the mining work budget, adjust the budget quota, and ensure that the green mine construction funds are implemented; Fourth, we should study and develop green finance, try to incorporate green standards into the threshold of credit financing for mining enterprises, provide more long-term development opportunities for green mining enterprises, and promote the formation of a good atmosphere for the pursuit of green development in the whole industry; Fifth, it is necessary to improve the green mine construction management system, formulate resource tax and fee policies for green mine construction, so that mining enterprises can fully promote green mine construction under the support of policy advantages.

5.3 Improve the legal and regulatory system to promote green mine construction

In order to fundamentally promote the construction of green mines, it is suggested that the current policy and mature experience of green mine construction should be fixed as legal provisions, which not only makes the construction of green mines legally reliable, but also provides a legal basis for improving related supporting policies. To improve the Mineral Resources Law and its supporting regulations and policies, it is necessary to improve the system and effectiveness of the formulation and implementation, and give full play to the guidance of the government and the enthusiasm of the market. On the one hand, we should draw wisdom from other industries and relevant foreign laws and regulations, carefully study and summarize, and determine the legal boundary; On the other hand, relevant competent departments should actively summarize the replicable experience, model and differences of green mine construction, and form a green mine construction standard system that ADAPTS to local characteristics and development. Governments at all levels, industry associations and mining enterprises should work together to gradually improve the green mine construction standards and norms differentiated by different regions, different mineral species and different resource endowments, and gradually form a complete, systematic, green mine construction laws and regulations system with Chinese characteristics that meet the requirements of green development.

5.4 Actively promote the application of new technologies in green mine construction

Scientific and technological innovation is the basic condition and key of green mine construction. First, we must actively change our business philosophy. Under the guidance of the concept of green development, mining enterprises should integrate the concept of market with the concept of environmental protection and social responsibility, vigorously promote the application of scientific and technological innovation and technological innovation achievements to build green mines, and realize the transformation of mining economy. Second, we need to continuously improve our ability to innovate. Enterprises should keep an eye on the frontier of mining science and technology, take the initiative to establish an industry-university-research integration platform with domestic and foreign research institutes and universities, and strive to build a first-class demonstration base for comprehensive utilization of resources. Third, we must make full use of existing policies. The State stipulates that mining enterprises shall be responsible for controlling and restoring geological environment problems caused by mines under construction or in production; The geological environment of mines and other historical problems left over from the period of planned economy or the loss of persons in charge shall be planned and restored by local governments at all levels, and the central government shall provide necessary support. The current policy provides a rare opportunity for mining enterprises to get rid of the historical burden and vigorously promote the application of new technology. Fourth, we should actively support the application of new technologies. Local governments and competent departments shall formulate special policies and allocate special funds to provide policy support and financial assistance for mining enterprises that promote and apply new technological achievements, including energy conservation and environmental protection, intelligent control and digital management. Strive to improve the level of comprehensive development and utilization of mineral resources, and achieve high-quality, efficient and rapid development of green mine construction.

5.5 Strengthen the supervision and administration of mineral resources development

In the mining of mineral resources, the role of resource development in protecting the ecological environment at the source should be highlighted, and the protection of the environment should be given priority. The principle of "whoever develops, who protects, who destroys, and who manages" shall be strictly enforced, and acts that destroy the ecological environment such as indiscriminate digging, dumping, and shooting shall be stopped. For enterprises that fail to fulfill their ecological protection responsibilities, supervisory and administrative departments shall have the right to prohibit their development activities. It is necessary to establish a mechanism for the government, enterprises and society to participate in the protection and supervision of natural ecology, and competent departments at all levels urge enterprises to carry out work in strict accordance with the implementation plan of exploration and mining through supervision and management before, during and after the exploration and development process, and control while mining. Establish the geological environment "double random - open" management system, strengthen the social supervision and government supervision of mining owners, establish and improve the geological environment restoration and management files and integrity files of mining enterprises, timely publicize the random inspection results, and include the random inspection results in the abnormal list of mining owners or one of the main contents of the list of serious violations. At the same time, the social credit records of mining enterprises are included, inter-departmental data sharing is realized, and credit constraints and joint punishment are implemented. Promote mining enterprises to adopt information network technology and intelligent control technology to build digital intelligent green mines. Using big data and cloud platform, research and development of mine environmental monitoring information system, so that green mine construction more and more efficient. For the illegal acts found in random checks, it is necessary to increase punishment according to law and regulations, form an effective deterrent, and enhance the consciousness of the mining rights holders to fulfill the obligations of mining geological environment protection and restoration.