“All industrial projects involve risks”, immediately warns Yann Gunzburger, professor of geomechanics, risks and mining engineering at the University of Lorraine and Mines de Nancy. The time of the mines Germinal is over, but the liabilities are heavy. “In France, we closed the last mines regarding twenty years ago, many left bad memories, like the Salsigne gold mine, the counter-example that we don’t want to revive, he points out. Today,we can apprehend almost all the risks, they are quantifiable and controllable, on the condition of agreeing to pay more for a labeled resource which has complied with a set of good practices. »
→ ANALYSIS. In Europe, the lithium (obstacle) race
The list is long of environmental nuisances that must be minimised. The rock mine creates vibrations, uses explosives or heavy means to break the rock, it consumes water, energy, chemical reagents, generates waste, etc.
Higher standards
The exploitation of geothermal water shows a lighter balance sheet. Producing 1 tonne of lithium hydroxide (the most efficient composition for batteries) emits 5 tonnes of CO2 from brines compared to 17 tonnes from hard rock, according to the International Energy Agency. But the exploitation of the depths can cause earthquakes, like those, in December 2020, north of Strasbourg, which led to the cessation of the geothermal power plant project of the Fonroche company.
“Mines must meet the requirements of facilities classified for the environment (ICPE)superior to what is practiced elsewhere in the countries of extraction”, notes Frédéric Poulard, head of the geotechnical risks unit linked to the exploitation of the subsoil, at the National Institute for the Industrial Environment and Risks. The old French mining code was reformed as part of the climate law of August 2021 and was brought closer to the environmental code.
“It’s time to have an exemplary site”
The operator must monitor the impacts on groundwater and surface water, contain dust emissions, avoid ground movements.It is now liable for damages not only during the operating phase but also for thirty years following the closure of the mine. And he must rehabilitate the site.
“There will always be processing residues that will have to be stored”, specifies Frédéric Poulard. And a part of intrinsic uncertainty in the exploitation of deposits, all unique. “It is essential to proceed with validation at each stage,the time is past for industrialists who arrive on conquered ground, says Yann Gunzburger. We have regulatory tools to control production, and democratic tools to involve the population. It is time to have an exemplary site. » The one that the Vice-President of the European Commission Maros Sefcovic called for on 1is February 2022 with “the highest environmental and social criteria”, essential guarantees of social acceptance.
