SWEDEN Law and Practice Contributed by: Peter Dyer and Alexandra Thörnroos, Wåhlin Advokater AB
to the main environmental law in Sweden: the Environmental Code. The same rules in the Code apply to mines as to any other operation that has an impact on the environment. In respect of a mining operation, the Land and Environment Court will examine the health and environmental effects of a mine and the protective measures to be put in place if the permit is granted. The court will also decide on the conditions for noise lev - els, damming, dumping, limiting emissions and so on. An EIA must always be submitted in the application process. The first step in acquiring an environmental per - mit for mining is the consultation process. This takes place between the applicant and those parties that may be environmentally affected by the mining operations, as well as public and pri - vate agencies and organisations concerned with environmental issues, such as the Environmen - tal Protection Agency ( Naturvårdsverket ). The purpose is to allow all concerned parties to be heard and have their interests considered when preparing the EIA. When the consultation and the EIA have been completed, the applicant may proceed and sub - mit to the Land and Environmental Court, which will assess whether the information presented in the consultation and the EIA is sufficiently detailed to proceed with a ruling or if further particulars are required. As the case proceeds, other affected parties are allowed to file addi - tional information relating to the application. The complete information will then be sent to all par - ties for review and comments. The applicant will have the opportunity to address any comments made during the consultation process. The com - plete process for obtaining a permit under the Environmental Code usually takes three to five years, depending on the size of the operation and where it is to be carried out.
If exploration work could have a significant impact on the environment, this will also neces - sitate certain investigations of the environmental aspects according to the Environmental Code. The Mining Inspectorate also hears applications for both exploration permits and mining permits in consultation with the County Administrative Board, which conducts its own examination of whether the site is acceptable from an environ - mental point of view and not just under the Min - erals Act. Overall, the County Administrative Board plays an important role in the examination of mining operations. Apart from acting as a referral body, it issues special permits for some exploration work, such as for driving off-road. The Envi - ronmental Permit Office of the County Admin - istrative Board decides on test mining permits. The County Administrative Board and the local municipality’s Environment Health Board are supervisory authorities regarding permit holders’ compliance with the environmental conditions. 2.2 Impact of Environmentally Protected Areas on Mining Natura 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of core breeding and resting sites for rare and threatened species, and some rare natural habitat types that are pro - tected in their own right. It stretches across all 27 EU countries, both on land and at sea. The aim of the network is to ensure the long-term survival of Europe’s most valuable and threat - ened species and habitats, listed under both the Birds Directive (2009/147/EC) and the Habitats Directive (Council Directive 92/43/EEC). Under the Environmental Code, if an intended opera - tion is located near or within a Natura 2000 area, the applicant must demonstrate that the activity will not affect the environment in a significant way. The Land and Environmental Court tends
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