The implementation process of the legislation on "Prohibiting mining exploration and exploitation in protected areas of river stream source basins and forests" was introduced at the Cabinet meeting held on May 30, 2012. 

A total of 242 gold mine licenses were suspended within the scope of the implementation process of the legislation, whereas 69 licenses were fully annulled and 36 were partly annulled. Also, borders were set for another 1,400 license fields apart from these gold placer mines.

The borders for these fields will be finalized and determined with the Cabinet meeting next week, after which discussions will start on issues of suspending, annulling and compensating for the licenses, reported the Ministers for Nature Environment and Tourism and for Mineral Resources and Energy.

By determining the borders for protected areas of river stream source basins and forests, it will enable an opportunity for intensive implementation of the “long titled” legislation.

Also, it was discussed, the license owner, who has not made closing of mines, remediation and environmental monitoring, to make enhanced remediation in the fields that were allotted with the special license of gold and placer mines.

With the Cabinet meeting, a decision was released to submit areas other than the fields which are restrained and limited on granting mineral resource exploration and exploitation licenses and state and local special needs areas, as state reserve on a duration of 5 years.

Currently, special licenses have been allotted for 14% of the total territory of Mongolia, and approximately 20% of land that is eligible for special licenses is being submitted to the state reserve. This 20% of land is purposed for running geological studies and research works funded with  the state budget, where around 50% of the total territory of Mongolia is now included in the state reserve.

Thus, the grant of new special licenses is being halted for another 5 years. In the future, if a field is to be withdrawn from the reserve concluding geological studies, regulations have now converted to the government granting permission after being reflected in the annual line of activity and discussed with the State Great Khural (Parliament). 

This decision puts an end to the buzz that rumors about unmonitored issuance of special licenses in large amounts, reported the Press and Media Department of the Government of Mongolia.