Talga mentioned as a referral body throughout the government's bill for the changes to the Minerals Act:
"Svemin and Talga propose that it should be clarified in the Minerals Act that the environmental impact assessment should only include the information relevant to the concession review. They also believe that it is doubtful whether a specific environmental assessment should be produced. The County Administrative Board in Norrbotten County considers that it should be clarified how the provisions of the Environmental Code regarding specific requirements for the content of an environmental impact assessment concerning activities or measures in a Natura 2000 area, and the provisions on the scope and level of detail in the environmental impact assessment, should be applied in cases concerning processing concessions. The County Administrative Boards in Skåne and Västra Götaland Counties point out that there is no investigation into the consequences of removing the reference to Sections 4:9 and 4:10 of the Environmental Code from the Minerals Act."
"In the application of the Minerals Act, the requirement for the content of the environmental impact assessment has been adapted to what is required for the review of an application for processing concession. The regulation of the content of the environmental impact assessment in the Environmental Code is based on the requirements of the EIA Directive. In section 6, it is noted that it is not clear whether the concession review falls within the scope of the EIA Directive. The Council on Legislation (Lagrådet) in its opinion assesses that most indications suggest that the EIA Directive is applicable to concession matters. The government considers that to some extent it may be unclear whether the directive applies to the concession review.
Even in the event that the directive is applicable, the government, in line with what Svemin and Talga propose, believes that there is a need for clarification in the Minerals Act regarding the scope and level of detail of the information in the environmental impact assessment. This is because certain issues may be better assessed in connection with the permitting process for the activity under the Environmental Code. Since a Natura 2000 permit will no longer be a prerequisite for granting an application for processing concession, it should not be required that the information on the impact on Natura 2000 areas in the environmental impact assessment be as detailed as the information required in the review of an application for a Natura 2000 permit. A corresponding provision already exists in Chapter 6, Section 36, second paragraph of the Environmental Code for environmental impact assessments prepared solely for the review of Natura 2000 permits. The government considers that there are now reasons to introduce such clarification in the Minerals Act as proposed in the Council on Legislation's referral. Thus, the government does not share the Council on Legislation's assessment that the addition should not be made."
"Entry into force and transitional provisions
Government proposal: The legislative changes shall come into force on July 1, 2024.
Government assessment: No transitional provisions are necessary. The proposal and assessment in the memorandum largely correspond to the government's proposal and assessment. The memorandum does not contain any proposals regarding the content of the environmental impact assessment.
Referral authorities: Only the Mining Authority, LKAB, and Talga express their views on this matter. The Mining Authority agrees with the memorandum's assessment that no transitional provisions are necessary. LKAB believes that there is no reason for the entry into force to be delayed longer than until the changes have been published in the Official Gazette (SFS), and thus the date can be set with the smallest possible margin in relation to this. Talga considers it of utmost importance that the proposed changes come into effect earlier than July 1, 2024.
Reasons for the government's proposal and assessment: The government agrees with LKAB and Talga that it is essential for the proposed changes to come into effect as soon as possible. An appropriate date is considered to be July 1, 2024.
The proposed changes entail that a Natura 2000 permit, where required, shall not be a prerequisite for granting an application for processing concession. The changes also involve adapting the requirements for the environmental impact assessment to the concession review. The new provisions should also apply to cases where the application has been submitted before the entry into force. The government thus assesses that there is no need to introduce transitional provisions."
(20min delay)
