ABSTRACT
All three mines presented in the book demonstrate that the mine closure process is an intense locus for competition, opposition, arbitration, and compromises among various actors. The interactions sometimes reach mutual points, but actors also collide due to incompatible values and objectives, power imbalance, and differing lifeworlds across cultural, political, and spatial domains. The experiences of Benguet Corporation and Philex Mining Corporation offer key messages for understanding the complex socio-economic, political, and business realities that make up the social terrains of mine closure, and therefore configure the nature and tempo of closure strategies and related activities. The communities’ participation in the mine closure process is not necessarily in relation to charting the ‘post-mining future’, but rather, in relation to the ‘here and now’. More than being bothered with a future that has not happened, their concerns are current: acquiring benefits from mining at present, or rejecting a new mining project on environmental, social, or economic grounds. An effective mine closure is more than implementing a technical formula involving step-by-step tasks. Mine closure is a social episode much more than a specific phase within the life-of-mine. It offers an opportunity for addressing social equity issues within and across communities.
