Minerals Act

Minerals (แร่) are inorganic geological resources of definite or only slightly variable chemical composition and physical character, expressly including coal, oil shale, marble, metals and slag from metallurgy, underground brine, and stone, soil or sand that a Ministerial Regulation designates as ornamental or industrial; water and rock salt (เกลือสินเธาว์) are excluded. The section also defines the four principal instruments the Act runs on: the prospecting licence (อาชญาบัตรสำรวจแร่), the exclusive prospecting licence (อาชญาบัตรผูกขาดสำรวจแร่), the special prospecting licence (อาชญาบัตรพิเศษ, which requires an exploration commitment and special benefits to the State) and the mining lease (ประทานบัตร). Small-scale digging (ขุดหาแร่รายย่อย) is labour or machinery totalling no more than 35 horsepower within areas, methods and minerals set by Ministerial announcement. The Director-General (อธิบดี) is the Director-General of the Department of Primary Industries and Mines.

Establishes the National Mineral Management Policy Committee (คณะกรรมการนโยบายบริหารจัดการแร่แห่งชาติ), chaired by the Prime Minister or a Deputy Prime Minister he assigns, with the Ministers of Natural Resources and Environment, Industry, Interior, and Agriculture and Cooperatives as vice-chairs, a list of ex officio permanent secretaries and department heads, and up to six appointed experts (one local-government representative, one environmental private-organisation representative, and up to four with geology, mining engineering, social-science or environmental expertise). Appointed experts serve four-year terms and may not serve more than two consecutive terms (Section 10). Its functions (Section 12) include proposing the mineral strategy, policy and master plan to the Cabinet, supervising agencies' compliance, and promoting community participation and setting its criteria.

The Committee must prepare a mineral management master plan covering at least the survey of mineral resources, reserves, classification of mineral-potential zones, areas or minerals to be reserved or conserved, and the zones designated as mining-ore areas. It must be prepared with public participation and public disclosure (except for minerals that could affect national security) and be prepared or revised every five years, then submitted to the Cabinet. A zone designated for mining may not lie in a national park, a wildlife sanctuary, a registered ancient monument zone, an area where the law absolutely prohibits use, a national safety and security zone, or a watershed or seepage-forest area. Section 18 then bars mining in any area, or of any mineral, that the plan reserves or conserves.

A mining licence may be granted only in an area the master plan designates as a mining-ore zone, where mining is economically worthwhile and consistent with the plan. Where a deposit has potential but suitable technology and environmental and health protection measures do not yet exist, the deposit is to be reserved until they do. For mining that could have a high impact on the environment and public health, the licence must require a mining buffer-zone line and baseline environmental and health data. The National Mineral Management Policy Committee may require its prior approval for licences in particular areas or minerals, weighing economic worth, technology, protective measures and cumulative impacts. Section 32 lets the Minister set the buffer-zone, baseline-data, pollution-control and worker-protection rules by announcement; the baseline rules must at least require a study of geological heavy-metal or toxin contamination and of residents' illness before and after mining.

Nobody may prospect for minerals anywhere, whoever holds rights in the land, without a prospecting licence, an exclusive prospecting licence or a special prospecting licence. The ordinary prospecting licence is issued by the local officer (mayor or head of the tambon administrative organisation), lasts one year (Section 41). The exclusive prospecting licence is issued by the Director-General, lasts no more than two years, and each application may cover no more than 2,500 rai (Sections 42-43). The special prospecting licence is issued by the Director-General with the Mineral Committee's approval, lasts no more than five years, and an application may cover up to 10,000 rai (up to 500,000 rai at sea); the applicant must commit to a stated annual exploration spend and offer special benefits to the State (Sections 46-47, 49). Licences are personal to the holder and extend to the holder's employees (Section 39).

Mining is allowed only under a mining lease (ประทานบัตร), which is personal to the holder (Section 52). Section 53 has the Minister divide mining by announcement into three categories. Type 1 is mining over an area of no more than 100 rai, with the lease issued by the local mineral industry officer with the consent of the Provincial Mineral Committee. Type 2 is mining over no more than 625 rai, with the lease issued by the Director-General with the consent of the Mineral Committee. Type 3 is all other mining, plus sea mining and underground mining, also issued by the Director-General with the Mineral Committee's consent. The Minister must have regard to area, mineral type, geology, mining method and environmental and health impact, and any mine that requires an environmental impact assessment under the environmental quality law must be classed as Type 2 or Type 3.

After an application for a mining lease, the local mineral industry officer fixes the application area and posts notice for not less than 30 days at the officer's office, the district office, the kamnan's and village headman's offices and the local government office. When the period ends the officer must hold a community opinion hearing under rules the Minister announces. If villagers oppose the mining and the issuing authority cannot resolve the matter, the authority may order the officer to hold a local referendum at the applicant's expense. Section 54 separately requires the application to include evidence of the mineral, a rehabilitation and monitoring plan for during and after mining, the special-benefit offer, and landowner consent.

A mining lease lasts no more than 30 years from the date of issue. If a lease was issued for less than 30 years, the holder who wants renewal must apply not less than 180 days before expiry; the issuing authority may renew, but the total period may not exceed 30 years, and the renewal period runs from the date renewal is granted. The renewal rules set by the Minister must at least require an evaluation of the holder's performance under the measures protecting environmental quality and public health. Section 66 requires the holder to open the mine within one year of the lease unless a delay is permitted.

The holder must mine in accordance with the method, plan and conditions in the lease; changes need written permission (from the local officer for Type 1, from the Director-General for Types 2 and 3). Mining may not take place within 100 metres of a registered highway or public watercourse for Type 1, or within 300 metres for Types 2 and 3, unless the lease allows it. The holder must not act so that toxic minerals or substances endanger persons, animals, plants, property or the environment; must rehabilitate the mine area under the plan approved by the Mineral Committee; must post security for rehabilitation and for remedying those affected, as the Mineral Committee sets; and, for Types 2 and 3, must carry liability insurance for third parties' life, body and property in the amount the Committee sets. Where actions under Section 68(2) to (5) materially affect the approved environmental impact assessment report, the expert committee under the environmental quality law must also approve. If the holder fails to rehabilitate or remedy, the Department draws on the security or insurance (Section 70), and a holder who, without good reason, does not post or restore the security or insurance within 15 days of notice is to have the lease revoked by the issuing authority.

Underground mining has its own chapter. For underground mining at no more than 100 metres below the surface, the applicant must show evidence of the right to mine in that land (Section 79). An underground lease area may not encroach on a national park or wildlife sanctuary (Section 80). Applicants must consult stakeholders in a prescribed process and pay subsidies so stakeholder groups can study the EIA; after the lease is issued, stakeholder representatives agree who has the right to inspect the mining and the holder deposits funds with the Department for experts to assist them (Sections 86-88). Landowners whose land lies above underground mining deeper than 100 metres are entitled to compensation fixed by a compensation committee (Sections 91-92). Ground subsidence is presumed to be caused by the mining (Section 90). A lease application for underground mining may cover up to 10,000 rai (Section 55).

Where a licence holder breaches the Act, a regulation or a licence condition, or operates in a way that may cause nuisance, damage or danger to persons, animals, plants, property or the environment, an official may order the breach stopped or corrected within a set period and the licensing authority may have officials bind and seal machinery during that time (Section 129). If the holder wilfully does not comply without good reason, the Director-General or issuing authority may order all or part of the operation to stop temporarily (Section 130 paragraph 1). If the holder still does not correct it in time, or the operation may cause severe, irreparable poisoning of the environment endangering life, health, property or the environment, the authority may revoke the licence by written notice (Section 130 paragraph 3). Other revocation grounds include unpaid debts 90 days after a written demand (Section 128) and failure to post or restore rehabilitation security (Section 70).

Holders of mining leases, small-scale mining licences, dressing and metallurgy licences and mineral-possession licences, and persons who notify panning, must pay mineral royalty (ค่าภาคหลวงแร่) on the minerals concerned (Section 131). The royalty rate may not exceed 30 per cent of the market price of the mineral. The actual rate schedule is set by Ministerial Regulation, not in the Act, and the market price of each mineral is set by the Director-General. Where royalty cannot be assessed until dressing or metallurgy is finished, security for payment must be required. If an assessment finds royalty unpaid or under-paid, the person must pay within 30 days of notice, and after that must pay the shortfall plus a surcharge of twice the shortfall (Section 133). A lease holder also pays a special levy of no more than 10 per cent of the royalty on minerals produced under that lease (Section 136).

Officials may enter a mining area, mineral-trading area, dressing area, metallurgy area, small-scale mining area or panning area to inspect operations between sunrise and sunset or during the site's working hours, and may continue at night or outside working hours if the inspection began and is unfinished. They may give written orders to stop breaches, correct operations or guard against danger; take reasonable mineral samples for analysis; and seize or attach minerals and property under Section 148. Officials are 'officials' under the Criminal Code and, for arrests, administrative or police officers under the Criminal Procedure Code (Section 146), and must show their identity card (Section 147). Obstructing an official or ignoring a Section 143(2) order is an offence under Section 172.

Mining without a mining lease (a breach of Section 52) carries imprisonment of up to five years, or a fine of up to 1,500,000 baht, or both. Prospecting without a licence (Section 38) carries up to one year, or a fine of up to 300,000 baht, or both (Section 155). Breaching key lease duties such as the lease plan and conditions, the setbacks in Section 68(3) or the rehabilitation security and insurance rules carries up to one year or up to 300,000 baht or both (Section 160); breaching Section 68(4), (5) or (6) carries up to two months or up to 60,000 baht, plus a daily fine of up to 50,000 baht until corrected. Dealing in minerals on which royalty has not been paid is punishable by up to six months or a fine of one to five times the mineral's value (Section 163). Section 140 makes a person who mines without permission liable to pay the State two to three times the value of the minerals mined, in addition to criminal liability (a lease holder who mines outside the lease area or in a prohibited area is likewise liable). Offences in a mineral-control zone carry double the penalty (Section 180), company directors or managers who ordered or failed to prevent a company's offence share the penalty (Section 181), and equipment and minerals used in the main offences are forfeited (Section 174).