A systematic review of the use of environmental economics in the mining industry

Abstract

Environmental economics is increasingly being used in project appraisals, environmental liability estimates and design of market-based instruments. Mining, an actor capable of causing adverse effects on the environment, human health and well-being, has already been affected by these developments, at a great extent. Up to date, several research studies have been carried out to monetise the externalities of mining projects. Nevertheless, a systematic review of these publications has not been carried out, yet. This paper aims to fill this gap in the literature by investigating (i) the main non-market valuation techniques used; (ii) the main external costs or benefits of mining projects monetised; and (iii) the monetary estimates of mining-related externalities. The analysis shows that practically all economic valuation techniques have been implemented towards assessing, in monetary terms, the mining impacts on the environment. However, the findings from the statistical analysis reveal a wide range of monetary estimates, which are attributed not only to the valuation methods and assumptions used but also to the specific characteristics of the mining projects in question. Also, the research draws directions for future work, as the analysis of the published studies indicates areas of limited availability of estimates or high heterogeneity between the available estimates.