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Mining boom in Mongolia


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With huge amounts of unexploited natural resources (gold, copper, coal and more) the Mongolian economy is estimated to grow massively in the years to come. But will it also benefit the people in Mongolia? Our work shows how mining operations lead to pollution and displacement for local herders and exacerbate water scarcity issues.

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dust & displacement | water scarcity | European financing | latest updates | publications

Dust, displacement and intimidation in the Gobi Altai mountains

Nomadic herders in the Gobi Altai mountains are facing pollution and displacement by the Tayan Nuur iron ore mine that receives financing from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. While the mining company Altain Khuder responds to criticism with intimidation, the EBRD is not doing enough to protect herders’ rights.

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A multimedia story about herders impacted by the Tayan Nuur mine

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Also available in Polish >>

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Dust, displacement, intimidation - Mongolian herders are under pressure by iron ore mine
Blog post | December 9, 2014

Report: Impacts of the Tayan Nuur iron ore mine on nomadic herders' lives in Mongolia
Study | December 9, 2014

Case study on the impacts of the global iron ore sector: Altain Khuder in Mongolia
SOMO case study | December 17, 2014

 

Water scarcity in the South Gobi desert

In the South Gobi desert, the highly intensive mining industry with its immense need for water can pose precarious risks to the livelihoods of herders.

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Spirited away - Mongolia's mining boom and the people that development left behind (pdf)
Study | January 30, 2012

 

EBRD financing for mining in Mongolia

Online debate

Following a discussion in the European Parliament on the EBRD's mining operations, Bankwatch organised a live-streamed google hangout with Mongolian campaigner Sukhgerel Dugersuren.

Watch the recording here >>

By financing several mining projects over the last few years, the EBRD followed other investors' bias towards the natural resources sector in Mongolia. Instead, it should diversify its portfolio in the country to help Mongolia reduce its dependency on commodity exports.

Read more:
The EBRD in Mongolia: Economic diversity is something else >>
Blog post | September 18, 2012

 

Institution: EBRD

Theme: Energy & climate, Social & economic impacts, Other harmful projects

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Latest developments

 

Dust, displacement, intimidation - Mongolian herders are under pressure by iron ore mine
Blog entry | December 9, 2014

Herders in the Mongolian Gobi Altai mountains are facing pollution and displacement by an iron ore mine. The mining company Altain Khuder responds to criticism with intimidation. The financier, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, is not doing enough to protect herders’ rights.

Altain Khuder, Central Asia, displacement, dust, Gobi Altai, herders, iron ore, local communities, mining, nomads, OT Watch, pollution, Tayan Nuur
Complaint to EBRD highlights negative impact of mining on Mongolian herders
Press release | July 4, 2013

Ulaanbaatar, 04 July 2013. A group of Mongolian herders submitted today an official complaint to the Project Complaints Mechanism of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), hoping to initiate a process of evaluation of the adverse impacts on their health and livelihoods of two mining projects financed by the international public lender.

Central Asia, mining
Rio Tinto's responsibilities in Mongolia extend beyond shareholders
Blog entry | February 15, 2013

New civil society recommendations for the Oyu Tolgoi mine in Mongolia illustrate that much more than the bottom line needs to be considered to avoid development at the expense of local communities.

Central Asia, coal, copper, gold, local impacts, mining, pollution, Rio Tinto, transparency, water
Make mining in Mongolia sustainable
Action alert | February 5, 2013

Mongolia has one of the world’s fastest growing economies because of the minerals it owns, but nearly a third of the population still lives in poverty. It could become one of those countries that suddenly became very wealthy but its people remained very poor, the so-called ‘resource curse.’

Central Asia
The World Bank's climate hypocrisy
Bankwatch in the media | December 17, 2012

Last week, the bank said 4C of global warming 'simply must not be allowed to occur'. This month, it is considering whether to provide financing for a new coal-fired power plant in Mongolia

Publications

Reflections on biodiversity offsetting in Mongolia
Briefing | May 25, 2015

A fact-finding mission in April 2015 to Mongolia identified serious concerns regarding the implementation of the new Mongolian Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) legislation - in particular the specific provision on biodiversity offsetting. Oyu Tolgoi (OT), the largest mining investment ever licensed in Mongolia, has been the first project to include a biodiversity offset action in its EIA and related biodiversity management plan.

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Infographic: Growth, poverty and mining in Mongolia
Leaflet | March 15, 2015

This infographic juxtaposes Mongolia's impressive economic growth over the last years with the still widespread poverty in the country.

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Complaint towards EBRD against Mongolian company Altain Khuder and its Tayan Nuur iron ore mine
Official document | December 23, 2014

The complaint, filed by seven individuals affected by the mine on 23 December 2014 at the EBRD’s Project Complaint Mechanism (PCM), alleges that the environmental and social impacts of Altain Khuder’s mine are inconsistent with EBRD’s policies. Herders have brought these impacts to the attention of the company on numerous occasions but rather than solving the problems the company has reacted with intimidation and legal action.

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When the dust settles - Impacts of the Tayan Nuur iron ore mine on nomadic herders' lives in Mongolia
Study | December 9, 2014

This report from a fact-finding mission to the Gobi Altai mountains in Mongolia describes the impacts the Tayan Nuur iron ore mine has on local nomadic herders, including displacement, dust pollution resulting in diminished livestock, and more. While the mining company Altain Khuder responds to criticism with intimidation, the company's financier, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, is not doing enough to protect herders' rights.

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New EBRD Environmental and Social policy needs climate muscle and tightened safeguards for protected areas
Bankwatch Mail | May 10, 2013

If there is one sector in which the EBRD has been causing particular controversy in recent years, it is the energy sector. From lignite in Slovenia to hydropower in Georgia and nuclear in Ukraine, the bank has financed a series of projects that have incurred opposition from various quarters. Now that the EBRD is revising its Environmental and Social Policy it's time to take a look at what needs to be learned from these projects.

 

Reports

Fact-finding mission report from the Tayan Nuur iron ore mine in the Gobi Altai mountains, December 2014

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Spirited away – Mongolia's mining boom and the people that development left behind

Report from a fact-finding mission to the Oyu Tolgoi gold and copper mine and the Tavan Tolgoi coal mine, January 2012

Download as pdf

Impacts of the global iron ore sector. Case study: Altain Khuder in Mongolia

How do business factors such as the need for infrastructure, mine lifespan and production targets interfere with a meaningful engagement of local communities? A case study by the Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations, SOMO.

Download as pdf

 

Images from Mongolia

Tayan Nuur iron ore mine in the Gobi Altai mountains
See it on flickr >>

Tavan Tolgoi (coal) and Oyu Tolgoi (gold, copper) mines in the South Gobi desert
See it on flickr >>