In February 2023, Polar Lithium, a joint venture of Nornickel and Rosatom, was awarded the right to develop Russia's largest lithium deposit. It located in the Kolmozersky District, 86 km from the village of Lovozero, the cultural center of the Saami people, at Bolshoy Potchemvarek Mountain. Since June 2022, the company has been consulting with representatives of the indigenous minorities of the North. Direct consultations and EEA will help to preserve traditional environmental management that will be affected by mine development.
In February 2023, Polar Lithium, a joint venture of Nornickel and Rosatom, was awarded the right to develop Russia's largest lithium deposit. It located in the Kolmozersky District, 86 km from the village of Lovozero, the cultural center of the Saami people, at Bolshoy Potchemvarek Mountain. Since June 2022, the company has been consulting with representatives of the indigenous minorities of the North. Direct consultations and EEA will help to preserve traditional environmental management that will be affected by mine development.
Nornickel and its subsidiaries operate under a sustainable development strategy, which includes interaction with indigenous minorities. Therefore, in 2023, Polar Lithium carried out EEA to prepare for negotiating a Free Prior and Informed Consent agreement.
The expertise made it possible to collect the opinions of the indigenous Saami people and the reindeer herders of the Izhma Komi group. Scientists assessed how development of the Kolmozerskoye deposit would affect traditional crafts, culture, indigenous languages, the environment, and ecosystem services.
Potential problem. The seasonal village, power lines, and motor road required for deposit development could disrupt migration routes and dissect grazing areas. If their area is significantly reduced, herd populations will decline. Meanwhile, reindeer herding is the main source of income for the Lovozero Saami and the most important element of preserving their culture and language.
Nornickel and its subsidiaries operate under a sustainable development strategy, which includes interaction with indigenous minorities. Therefore, in 2023, Polar Lithium carried out EEA to prepare for negotiating a Free Prior and Informed Consent agreement.
The expertise made it possible to collect the opinions of the indigenous Saami people and the reindeer herders of the Izhma Komi group. Scientists assessed how development of the Kolmozerskoye deposit would affect traditional crafts, culture, indigenous languages, the environment, and ecosystem services.
Potential problem. The seasonal village, power lines, and motor road required for deposit development could disrupt migration routes and dissect grazing areas. If their area is significantly reduced, herd populations will decline. Meanwhile, reindeer herding is the main source of income for the Lovozero Saami and the most important element of preserving their culture and language.
VASILY ZAKHAROV,
Head of Public and Government Relations at Polar Lithium:
“EEA and FPIC are carried out basically at a stage when the company can still amend the project. If we had not conducted ethnological expertise on time, had no knowledge of reindeer husbandry, and had no maps of seasonal pastures, the power line and motor roads would have been routed in the straightest, most inexpensive way possible. Moreover, there was a significant risk of affecting burial sites, sacred places.
EEA helped us to realize that the direct route would cut off more than 30% of the pastures, and would sever the reindeer migration routes. Therefore, Polar Lithium has developed a different, southern route. It is longer, but runs through reserve pastures and has minimal impact on reindeer husbandry.
Jointly with the Tundra Reindeer Herding Cooperative, we are looking for a solution that will suit everyone. And this is not only roads, but also the location of the seasonal village and other infrastructure facilities.”
Territory of survey. The expertise covered the whole Kolmozersky District, where Tundra Agricultural Production Cooperative was operating. The Saami people in the villages of Lovozero, as well as the Izhema Komi people and Nenets in Krasnoshchelye have been practicing semi-wild reindeer herding since ancient times, with herds of many thousands of reindeers moving on their own across the Kola Peninsula from north to south and vice versa throughout the year.
The map of seasonal pastures was compiled by the Murmansk Land Management Design and Survey Enterprise.
Who gathered the data. The study involved researchers from St. Petersburg State University, Kola Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Murmansk Land Management Design and Survey Enterprise, Moscow State University, and the Russian Museum of Ethnography. EEA was organized by the Arctic Development Project Office.
The map of seasonal pastures was compiled by the Murmansk Land Management Design and Survey Enterprise.
Who gathered the data. The study involved researchers from St. Petersburg State University, Kola Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Murmansk Land Management Design and Survey Enterprise, Moscow State University, and the Russian Museum of Ethnography. EEA was organized by the Arctic Development Project Office.
About how EEA was conducted
The scientists' work was not easy. It is not easy to spot local residents at their permanent residences in the villages of Lovozero and Krasnoshchelye. The working day of the Saami, as well as of the Komi and Nenets, who lead a similar way of life, involves constant movement. The inhabitants are engaged in fishing, gathering wild plants, and herding reindeer.
Scientists asked indigenous representatives to fill out questionnaires and spent about 80 hours conducting oral interviews; environmental surveys were carried out in the area of the deposit and the future road and power line. The researchers found out the characteristics of the traditional environmental management of the inhabitants, the modern use of the Saami, Komi and Nenets languages. Folklorized (Mythologised?) forms of culture were also studied.
Scientists asked indigenous representatives to fill out questionnaires and spent about 80 hours conducting oral interviews; environmental surveys were carried out in the area of the deposit and the future road and power line. The researchers found out the characteristics of the traditional environmental management of the inhabitants, the modern use of the Saami, Komi and Nenets languages. Folklorized (Mythologised?) forms of culture were also studied.
Result
The EEA gave answers to the following three fundamental questions:
- Which communities and traditional economic activities of indigenous minorities will be affected by the project? It is only reindeer herding for the Kolmozersky Project.
- What will be the degree of this impact and how can it be minimized?
- Who exactly are the legitimate representatives of local communities, leaders of their opinions, what is the system of collective decision-making?
FPIC is an opportunity to reach a collegial solution and show respect to indigenous
peoples' rights
In Russian experience, conducting EEA is considered to be a cutting-edge practice. But many mining companies stop at this point. They get impact assessments, recommendations from scientists, and present them to the local community.
Polar Lithium is taking it a step further. The Company intends to obtain the Free, Prior, and Informed Consent of Indigenous Peoples, FPIC. For this purpose, the company develops mitigation proposals based on the results of EEA to amend the project, calculates compensation payments if damages are unavoidable, and proposes sustainable development activities. All of these are included in the interaction plan that is jointly developed by the company and the indigenous peoples during the FPIC process and becomes the basis of the consent agreement.
Polar Lithium is taking it a step further. The Company intends to obtain the Free, Prior, and Informed Consent of Indigenous Peoples, FPIC. For this purpose, the company develops mitigation proposals based on the results of EEA to amend the project, calculates compensation payments if damages are unavoidable, and proposes sustainable development activities. All of these are included in the interaction plan that is jointly developed by the company and the indigenous peoples during the FPIC process and becomes the basis of the consent agreement.
An example of an adjustment by local residents
The management of the Tundra Co-operative Company believes that this production may not be profitable in the present-day environment and that investments should be allocated differently.
Other ways that Polar Lithium can support reindeer herders
In addition to relocating linear facilities, Polar Lithium will compensate the community for lost profits that will occur due to withdrawing a portion of their territories. At present, the cooperative has a 15-year agricultural land lease. However, even after 15 years, Saami reindeer herding should not disappear in the Murmansk Region.
Therefore, EEA assesses the entire term of land acquisition. Polar Lithium has made commitments to compensate for losses over the life of the project. This is a fair decision by the company because the land will be used by the company and withdrawn from reindeer herding all these years.
Therefore, EEA assesses the entire term of land acquisition. Polar Lithium has made commitments to compensate for losses over the life of the project. This is a fair decision by the company because the land will be used by the company and withdrawn from reindeer herding all these years.
Compensation of losses to local residents
The Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) is now performing an accurate calculation of losses based on the Methodology for Calculating Losses of Traditional Economic Activities of Indigenous Peoples, approved in the Russian Federation, using maps of reindeer grazing prepared by the Murmansk Land Management Enterprise At the same time, they take into account the reindeer-intensity of the pastures, the amount of commercial products produced there, and the existing market prices. Consideration is given not only to the area of withdrawal, but also to the area of possible stress effects of the facility, such as noise.
Compensation mechanisms will be developed by the company and local residents with the help of FPIC once the calculation is ready. It's not just about cash payments. For example, compensation may come in the form of additional land leases, technology to improve farm productivity, and the construction of new corrals and fences for reindeer populations.
Additional jobs for local residents will be provided at the deposit. People will require training and Polar Lithium will allocate funds for this purpose.
The rules of interaction with indigenous peoples for shift workers will be spelled out in company documents. The workers will not be allowed to leave the settlement, hunt in the tundra and fish in local rivers and lakes.
Benefit sharing mechanisms will be developed by the company in compliance with international standards. This means creating various benefits and improving the quality of life of local residents. Polar Lithium has a Social Partnership Agreement with the Murmansk Region. In the future, the company may provide financial assistance in developing health care, education or infrastructure in the territories where it has a presence. For example, the roads it has constructed can be used by local residents in a certain mode.
All issues will be discussed in the villages of the Lovozero District, with participation of the Ministry of the Arctic Economy and Development. Preparations for the procedure are underway. It's important to find out what the residents' needs are, and what they really need.
On June 3, representatives of Polar Lithium worked in Krasnoshchelye, which can be reached only by helicopter, and continued to work in Lovozero on June 4. These were not the first meetings of the company's representatives with indigenous peoples; they had visited the villages four times previously.
Issues that have been discussed beforehand:
Compensation mechanisms will be developed by the company and local residents with the help of FPIC once the calculation is ready. It's not just about cash payments. For example, compensation may come in the form of additional land leases, technology to improve farm productivity, and the construction of new corrals and fences for reindeer populations.
Additional jobs for local residents will be provided at the deposit. People will require training and Polar Lithium will allocate funds for this purpose.
The rules of interaction with indigenous peoples for shift workers will be spelled out in company documents. The workers will not be allowed to leave the settlement, hunt in the tundra and fish in local rivers and lakes.
Benefit sharing mechanisms will be developed by the company in compliance with international standards. This means creating various benefits and improving the quality of life of local residents. Polar Lithium has a Social Partnership Agreement with the Murmansk Region. In the future, the company may provide financial assistance in developing health care, education or infrastructure in the territories where it has a presence. For example, the roads it has constructed can be used by local residents in a certain mode.
All issues will be discussed in the villages of the Lovozero District, with participation of the Ministry of the Arctic Economy and Development. Preparations for the procedure are underway. It's important to find out what the residents' needs are, and what they really need.
On June 3, representatives of Polar Lithium worked in Krasnoshchelye, which can be reached only by helicopter, and continued to work in Lovozero on June 4. These were not the first meetings of the company's representatives with indigenous peoples; they had visited the villages four times previously.
Issues that have been discussed beforehand:
- the information that Polar Lithium will pave the road along the southern route was received positively;
- residents were concerned about the potential deterioration of the radiological situation. The company has already had an unequivocal answer to this: all expert assessments have been received. Background thresholds of ore to be mined and waste from its development are not exceeded, and even lower than the standard;
- The road, which is currently used and in poor condition, is operated not only by Polar Lithium, but also by other subsoil users, who do not coordinate the traffic with reindeer herders. Therefore, this issue will be dealt with separately.
Preparations for the FPIC procedure have begun
It is already clear that the FPIC procedure will take at least three rounds. It is important to make sure that the views of all reindeer herders have been presented in the procedure.
VASILY ZAKHAROV:
“We are in no hurry to finalize the FPIC procedure by a certain date. The company should not exert pressure on indigenous peoples. Our job is to provide counseling assistance. For this purpose, we have created and maintain a website where we post all the materials.
There is a special form for residents to ask any questions, engage independent experts to assess the impact, and put different opinions on the scales. May I remind you that the FPIC procedure in Tukhard took five months. We also hope to complete it by the end of the year.
Then, we'll move forward. We still have an environmental impact assessment (EIA) ahead which will also take place in 2025.”
On the FPIC procedure in Tukhard
Nornickel conducted the first FPIC procedure in the settlement of Tukhard in 2022. It was required to move the houses of local residents out of the industrial area where Norilsktransgaz operates.
First, the company decided on opinion leaders, because a dialog only with authoritative residents should be conducted. Then, the number of houses to be built was determined. In doing so, the number of families that are registered in the same living space was taken into account. The company believed that each family should have separate living quarters.
Some people decided to stay where they were, while others decided to move to the settlement of Dudinka and live there. It turned out to be a challenge to gather all residents, so a council of Tukhard residents comprising seven people was formed. They were elected by the whole settlement. These people have been empowered to make a decision.
First, the company decided on opinion leaders, because a dialog only with authoritative residents should be conducted. Then, the number of houses to be built was determined. In doing so, the number of families that are registered in the same living space was taken into account. The company believed that each family should have separate living quarters.
Some people decided to stay where they were, while others decided to move to the settlement of Dudinka and live there. It turned out to be a challenge to gather all residents, so a council of Tukhard residents comprising seven people was formed. They were elected by the whole settlement. These people have been empowered to make a decision.
GRIGORY DYUKAREV,
Commissioner for the Rights of Indigenous Small-Numbered Peoples in the Krasnoyarsk Territory:
“The new settlement will be built 3–4 km away from the old one because some of the residents work at Nornickel’s site. It is dangerous to commute to work during blizzards and minus 40-degree frost. Besides, local schoolchildren have free meals in the site’s canteen, and local residents have access to the hospital located on the site’s premises.
During the FPIC process, we agreed on what infrastructure facilities are needed. Such as processing facilities, a boat station, and a road to the river so that people can go fishing and hunting. The company summed up this information and held a tender to select a contractor.
Architectural solutions were selected, and the location of the facilities was determined. Residents of the village of Tukhard were invited to review the plan. It is currently going through the approval process.”
Nornickel’s experience of communicating with indigenous peoples within the framework of FPIC pushed it to take an important decision. The company has set up an unit within the Polar Division that will interact with indigenous small-numbered peoples on a permanent basis. Remarkably, the unit consists of representatives of indigenous peoples who speak the same language as the local residents and understand their concerns and hopes. Polar Lithium is to establish a similar unit.
Photos by Nornickel
June, 2024
