Anglo American Sakatti Mining Oy (AASM), Anglo American’s local subsidiary operating in Sodankylä, Finland. The Sakatti deposit is located in Finnish Lapland 15 km north of the municipality centre of Sodankylä. The deposit is a unique, poly-metallic deposit that contains seven payable metals, including copper, nickel, cobalt, platinum, palladium, gold, and silver. The planned mine targets the production of two concentrates, a high-grade copper and a high-grade nickel concentrate. The area is partly located in Viiankiaapa, a protected mire and a Natura 2000 designated area.
The factory area will be located in Kuusivaara. A new access road is needed for the mining area. The mine will be connected to the national grid with a new 25 km long 110 kV power line on the west side of Kitinen. The concentrate will be transported by road to the port of Kemi or Oulu.
The planning of the project is subject to the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) procedure in accordance with the Act on Environmental Impact Assessment Procedure (EIA Act, 252/2017). The Environmental Impact Assessment Report (EIA Report) presents information about the project, alternatives, and an assessment of likely significant environmental impacts. An assessment of the project’s impacts has been carried out in accordance with Section 65 of the Nature Conservation Act.
| AAA | |||||||||||||
| AA | |||||||||||||
| A | |||||||||||||
| B | |||||||||||||
| C | |||||||||||||
| Community Relationships | Environment | Safety |
| Yes | No | |
|---|---|---|
| Location in a nature reserve* | ||
| Voluntary environmental management system ** | ||
| Environmental risk assessment carried out |
| Kyllä | ei | |
|---|---|---|
| Staff initiative system | ||
| Performance appraisals concerning the entire personnel | ||
| Staff training plan | ||
| Equality plan | ||
| Employee representation in company administration | ||
| Occupational health and safety management system* | ||
| Occupational safety card for everyone working in the area |
Exploration activities have been carried out in the areas of reindeer herding cooperatives Oraniemi and Sattasniemi. Intensive and open discussion is held with the local reindeer herders to integrate reindeer herding and exploration activities. In all of a season’s operations reindeer herding and the land use from the viewpoint of reindeer herding is taken into account.
As a part of important baseline studies related to reindeer herding in the Sakatti project area, GPS-collars have been provided to Sattasniemi and Oraniemi reindeer owners’ association for monitoring of the reindeers’ movements and herding habits. The gained data has been used in the Sakatti mining project’s EIA and regional planning processes, along with other design work. A separate investigation into reindeer husbandry has been produced as a part of the EIA process, which can be read at: LAPPI_Liite_20_Porotalousselvitys.pdf (ymparisto.fi)
According to the assessment of the company its operations have no negative impacts on other livelihoods. Continuous stakeholder discussion and variety of co-operative work is done with the key stakeholders of the project, e.g. with the municipality of Sodankylä, local residents, reindeer herding cooperatives, landowners and environmental organizations.
In the social impact assessment (SIA) of Sakatti project the social impacts to all the stakeholder groups have been identified and addressed. SIA is available at: Sakatin monimetalliesiintymän kaivoshanke – Sosiaalisten vaikutusten arviointi (ymparisto.fi)
According to the company’s Environmental and Social Impact assessments, the impacts on the recreational use of the area are limited, since the exploration activities are mainly carried out during winter.
In Viiankiaapa where the possible mining activities would happen underground, the effects on the utilization of the area for forestry and agriculture or for the recreational use of the nature conservation area, are minimal. During operations the utilization of the area in the immediate proximity to the industrial site will be limited, such as recreational use and forestry. The impacts of the planned mining project on the recreational use of the nearby area have been inspected more closely in the EIA and SIA reports.
