Abstract
Since the Greenland Self-Government Act came into force in 2009, economic development and the right to utilize natural resources in Greenland lies in the hands of the Self-Government. Earlier efforts to establish this authority were made back in the 1970s, when discussions on Home Rule were first on the agenda. Mining industries are not a new activity in Greenland. During the Second World War, Greenlandic cryolite was used to produce aluminum for the North American aircraft industry. Other essential natural resources, such as gold and gemstones, have also received international interest over the years. Greenland’s new development aim is to build up a large-scale mining industry. This article elucidates the form of public consultation processes followed in Greenland in connection with two large-scale mining projects and the different views various actors have regarding these events. How did the deliberative democratic process unfold in Greenland regarding these projects? Was the process followed an effective way to manage these kinds of projects? The article shows that two projects that received a lot of media attention: the 2005 iron ore mine project in Isukasia, and the 2001 TANBREEZ-project to extract rare earth elements, used highly different approaches when it comes to deliberative democracy. In the former case, a limited degree of deliberative democracy was used, while in the latter case, the opposite applies.(Published: May 2016)Citation: M. Ackrén. “Public consultation processes in Greenland regarding the mining industry.” Arctic Review on Law and Politics, Vol. 7, No. 1, 2016, pp. 3–19. http://dx.doi.org/10.17585/arctic.v7.216
Highlights
In the process of building up Greenland’s mining industry after the Government of Greenland took over the mineral resources sector,1 heavy criticism against the procedures and processes around the extractive industries has come from various stakeholders
Home Rule in Greenland was established in 1979, giving Greenland full control over administration of the country in self-financed areas and some control over policy implementation in spheres subsidized from Denmark, but as mentioned above, natural resources were considered as a joint matter
It is evident that Greenland is not yet capable of handling large-scale projects on its own, and is dependent on external expertise in this area
Summary
In the process of building up Greenland’s mining industry after the Government of Greenland took over the mineral resources sector, heavy criticism against the procedures and processes around the extractive industries has come from various stakeholders. There are thousands of pages of technical data available on the Internet about each of the projects, but these documents are difficult to read and interpret Another problem lies in the form of the public consultation processes themselves. The second model of participatory democracy emphasizes more participation from citizens in the form of active participation in decision-making This form is realized through the decentralization of politics to local communities. Deliberative democracy is the closest Greenland has to public consultation processes or hearing processes in relation to the mining industry projects. This is not the only context that deliberative democracy is used. The final section draws conclusions based on the findings in the article
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