SMA Mineral Oy operates limestone quarries in Tornio and Pieksämäki as well as a quartz quarry in Tornio. The company does not engage in mineral exploration. Its parent company is the Swedish SMA Mineral AB, headquartered in Persberg, Southern Sweden. The Group operates at a total of 20 locations in five different countries across Europe. In Finland, SMA Mineral Oy extracts limestone and quartz and produces lime-based products at the Kalkkimaa and Loukolampi lime plants. Mining operations consist of open-pit quarries and lime plants, where, depending on the product, crushing, screening, grinding, blending, and bagging are carried out.
In addition to quarrying, the company produces quicklime and hydrated lime in Tornio, which are not covered in this report.
The largest dolomite deposit in the Nordic countries, Kalkkimaa in Tornio, has been in use since the 16th century. With the current extraction volume, raw material reserves are expected to last for more than 100 years. Quartz has been quarried at the Ristimaa site in Tornio since 1989. The Ankele dolomite deposit in Pieksämäki has been in use since the 1960s.
Company website in English: Home – SMA Mineral
The company’s operations are assessed as part of the Group’s EcoVadis sustainability evaluation, where the Group achieved a bronze rating in 2024.
Note: The company’s sites do not engage in beneficiation activities, and therefore no tailings are generated. Furthermore, water usage is minimal, e.g., there are no process effluents. Consequently, the sustainability system does not assess the level of tailings and water management, even though these appear as level C in the figure below.
| AAA | |||||||||||||
| AA | |||||||||||||
| A | |||||||||||||
| B | |||||||||||||
| C | NA | NA | |||||||||||
| Community Outreach | Biodiversity Management | Tailings management | Water management | Climate change management | Mine closure | Occupational health and safety |
| Crisis management preparedness | Internal review | Training and exercises | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crisis Management Planning – Corporate | |||
| Crisis Management Planning – Site |
SMA Mineral Oy is a mining company that is not currently engaged in mineral exploration. No active exploration has been carried out since 2022. In earlier years, exploration activities were conducted in the municipality of Tornio (in 2021, quartz). The exploration methods used in 2021 included deep drilling, surface sampling and drilling. Quartz has been one of the company’s key exploration targets.
| Yes | No | |
|---|---|---|
| Location in a nature reserve* | ||
| Environmental Management System ** | ||
| Environmental impact assessment required (in accordance with the EIA Act) * | ||
| Measurements for dust | ||
| Measurements for noise | ||
| Measurements for vibration | ||
| Environmental risk assessment carried out | ||
| Deviations from environmental permits *** | ||
| Closure plan for the mine | ||
| Plan for the controlled shutdown of the mine in unexpected situations |
| Yes | No | |
|---|---|---|
| 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 | ||
| Own rescue unit |
Mining operations are not located within the reindeer husbandry area. The company actively participates in the activities of stakeholders related to rural livelihoods at the local level. According to the company’s assessment, tourism operators are not considered stakeholders. Landowners are taken into account in the company’s stakeholder engagement. The company actively supports local hobby associations and provides employment locally both directly and indirectly (through contractors).
The adverse land-use impacts of SMA Mineral’s operations include reduced residential amenity and decreased property values in the immediate vicinity of the mining concessions. In the surroundings of the operational areas, bird density is slightly lower. Together with other land uses in the area, mining activities have a minor negative effect on local fungal species. Drainage effects are also visible in peatland and forest areas, although the nearby areas have also been ditched.
As a positive impact, mining activities maintain rich flora and fauna around the quarries by keeping vegetation open and the soil nutrient-rich, thereby supporting the flourishing and regional increase of plant species that thrive in lime-rich environments (including certain endangered plant and butterfly species protected under the EU Habitats Directive).
Landscape values have been taken into account in the company’s operational planning. The Kalkkimaa plant area and the access road leading to it are designated in the land-use plan with the marking sk/p, indicating a locally valuable cultural environment. The traditional structure and scale of construction in the area are to be preserved, and the alignment of roads as well as old farmyards with their cultivated fields are considered and maintained in planning activities. In the immediate surroundings of the Kalkkimaa area, there are several traditionally valuable cultural landscapes, protected archaeological sites, nature conservation areas, and endangered plant species, the preservation of which the company ensures in accordance with its voluntary management plan.
The company’s main stakeholder communication channels include direct contacts with local residents, local newspapers, the annual report, the website, letters and events, as well as site visits. The company provides support for local sports activities, with an emphasis on junior activities, for employees’ leisure sports and cultural activities, and for the SOS Children’s Village. The company also offers opportunities for thesis work, summer jobs, and internships for pupils and students. A feedback channel is available for stakeholders, and practices for handling feedback and stakeholder engagement are developed annually together with the management system.
The company’s internal project on carbon-neutral quicklime production and carbon dioxide capture continued in 2024. Our partner in the project is SaltX Technology. Link to the project: ZEQL and ZEQL – SMA Mineral. The project has progressed to the plant construction phase, and the results of the pilot period have been positive. The company’s objective is to start commercial production in 2026.
