NORWAY Law and Practice Contributed by: Mona Søyland, Øystein Nore Nyhus, Halvor Klingenberg and Fredrik Haberer Anfinsen, Simonsen Vogt Wiig
tion is under 10,000 cubic metres and more than ten years have passed since the extraction right was granted and operation has not commenced, if an extended deadline has expired, or one year after the operation licence has lapsed. Applying for an extraction right for state-owned mineral costs NOK10,000 per area. If the appli - cation covers more than one contiguous area, an additional fee of NOK500 is charged for each subsequent area. To maintain the extrac - tion right for state minerals, an annual fee of NOK100 is charged for each 10,000 square metres commenced, with a minimum annual fee of NOK1,000 per area, regardless of size. In addition, the right-holder will pay the landowner an annual fee of 0.5% of the sales value of the extracted materials. An additional fee of 0.25% accrues in Finnmark county. If there are multiple landowners in the extraction area, the fee will be distributed among the landowners in proportion to the area each owns within the extraction area. The extraction right itself does not grant the right to start mineral deposit operations. Extracting more than 10,000 cubic metres requires an oper - ating licence from the DMF, in addition to other relevant permits being in place, such as a zoning plan according to the Planning and Building Act, permits from pollution authorities, etc. An operational licence on state-owned miner - als may only be granted to a party holding an extraction licence. An operational licence will entail a public hearing with a number of stake - holders, including the pollution authorities, the relevant municipalities, the county governor, the Norwegian waterfalls and energy authorities, potential affected reindeer herding districts, etc.
If the project is situated in Finnmark county, the Sámi Parliament will be involved. Public transparency and stakeholder participa - tion are key features in Norway. An operating licence can be time-limited, and the conditions set in the licence can be amended or changed every tenth year. If the mining activity has not commenced within five years of the issu - ance, the operating licence may become void if an extension is not granted. The exploration and extraction of landowner’s minerals are based on a contract entered into directly between the landowner and the inter - ested party. Extractions exceeding 500 cubic metres must however be reported to the DMF, and those over 10,000 cubic metres will require an operating licence to be granted by the DMF.
2. Impact of Environmental Protection and Community Relations on Mining Projects 2.1 Environmental Protection and Licensing of Mining Projects
The environmental licensing process for mining projects in Norway will consist of several differ - ent steps and permits depending on the project. All pollution is prohibited by law, and before entering an operational phase, the right-holder must apply for the relevant emission and waste storage permits under the Pollution Control Act. Efforts to avoid and limit pollution and waste problems will be based on the technology that will give the best results in the light of an overall evaluation of current and future use of the envi - ronment and economic consequences.
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