Assessing the Role of Mining in Ghorveh County on the Sustainability of Surrounding Villages

Great part of the rural livelihoods rely on the exploitation of environmental resources. Mining is one of these resources that can lead to sustainable development and have numerous impacts on various dimensions. The purpose of this descriptive-analytical study is to evaluate the role of Sarigoni gold mine and Ghezeljehkand pumice mining on the sustainability of the surrounding villages. The sample size consists of 330 persons. Sustainability assessment of villages conducted in three dimensions (economic, social, and environmental) with 31 indices using questionnaires. In data analysis, Spearman correlation and Mann-Whitney tests were used utilizing SPSS software. The villages' ranking result indicated that in economic and social sustainability, Ghezeljekand was at the first rank and Jedaghaye was at the bottom of the list. Besides, Toghanbabagargar and Dashkasan were at the first and last in terms of environmental sustainability. Finally, in total sustainability, Ghezeljekand was in the first place and Jedaghaye was the lowest. Sustainability level aspect research shows that Ghezeljekand is a sustainable village and two villages of Maloojeh and Toghan are semi-sustainable and three villages Dashkasan, Baharloo, and Jedaghaye are non-sustainable. It was also found that there is a significant relationship between different dimensions of sustainability and also between sustainability and distance from villages. There was a significant difference between the sustainability of the villages according to the type of mine, the type of mine ownership, as well as the number of working and non-working households in the mine. In line with mining to play a positive role on sustainable rural development, following measures is necessary: 1-prioritizing local workforces for employment 2- part of the mines Income to be spent on the development of surrounding villages, 3-mitigating environmental damage by managing resources and waste recycling, 4- by exchanging information, involving the villagers in planning and implementation, their trust and satisfaction will be gained.

 Mining is one of the approaches to diversify the rural economy that can play a remarkable role as a capacity for rural sustainability and provide a good basis for achieving sustainable rural development. Despite the positive effects of mining, the development of mines with a focus on economic benefits causes damage in the areas of the environment and society, which has increased the necessity of assessing the sustainability of surrounding environments. So the purpose of this descriptive-analytic study is evaluation of the role of Sariguni gold mine in the Dashkasan, Baharloo and Jedaghaye villages and also Ghezeljekand pumice mine impact on the sustainability of Ghezeljekand, Maloojeh and Toghanbabagargar villages. Research shows some similarities in terms of environmental unsustainability, including degradation of rangeland and agricultural lands, changes in the visual quality of natural landscapes, pollution of groundwater and running water, and land-use change.

 To evaluate the role of mining on the sustainability of investigated villages, on the basis of literature review, theoretical foundations and Field observations, variables and indicators were identified in the economic, social and environmental dimensions. Then utilizing a questionnaire, Field data was collected. The sample size included 330 householders of investigated villages that were studied in two groups of working and non-working in the mine. In order to calculate the reliability of the questionnaire, Cronbach's alpha method was used to calculate the reliability of the questionnaire. The alpha value for economic, social, environmental, and total sustainability was 0.799, 0.745, 0.828, and 0.79, respectively. Validity was confirmed using the content method by experts and key informants. Moreover, utilizing SPSS software, the Spearman correlation coefficient was established between different dimensions of sustainability in the studied villages and between the sustainability and distance of the villages from the mine. Mann-Whitney test was used to examine the differences in rural sustainability in terms of type and ownership of the mine and the differences in the views of employed and non-employed groups in the mine.  

The results showed that the studied villages are in different conditions in terms of the impact of mining on the sustainability of the settlement. In economic and social dimensions, Ghezeljehkand villages were in the first rank and Jadaghayeh in the lowest rank, in the environmental dimension, Toghanbabagargar in the first rank, and Dashkasan in the last rank. As economic sustainability increases, so does social sustainability, but environmental sustainability deteriorates. In contrast, with the improvement of social sustainability, environmental sustainability increases. Only three investigated villages were economically sustainable. Some previous studies have shown the sustainability and improvement of economic indicators and many cases have had the opposite result. From a social point of view, only one village was considered sustainable and the rest were semi-sustainable and unsustainable, which indicates the dominance of negative social effects of mining on rural communities. In this regard, apart from the traditional paradigm of mining and lack of attention to sustainable and responsible mining strategy in most developing countries and Iran, which leads to the negative effects of this industry on villages, other situational and specific factors playing a role. The results showed that by reducing the distance from the mine, the villages' economic and social sustainability increases, and environmental sustainability decreases. This is evidence of the unsustainable role-playing of mines in rural areas, as the insignificant economic and social impacts of these mines are limited to the nearest villages, and the negative environmental effects are reduced only by moving away from the mine. It was also found that the type of mine and extractive material also have a significant impact on the socio-economic and environmental dimensions of rural sustainability and need to be typologically and independently examined in terms of their specific issues and challenges. Furthermore, rural households working in the mine have a more positive view and more satisfaction, especially in the economic and social dimensions, compared to non-working peers in the mine. Hence, private ownership of mines in comparison with cooperative ones, in terms of increasing market opportunities, job creation, and diversification of the rural economy has a positive effect on economic sustainability and a negative one on the social and environmental sustainability of rural areas.

Exploitation of mines is one of the ways to diversify the rural economy, although mining has not been able to play a significant role in achieving this goal. Mining in rural areas is far from the principles and criteria of sustainable mining. The economic leak of mining investments in the local community is very small. Its Job and income opportunities for the villagers are meager and the negative social and environmental consequences are significant. Although these effects occur with different intensity and weakness according to distance, type of mine, type of mine ownership, employment in mine, etc., it strongly emphasizes that positive role-playing of mining on sustainable rural development requires a fundamental change. Thus adopting to sustainable mining instead of traditional profit-oriented mining is necessary. Therefore, according to the findings of the study, some recommendations put forward: 1) prioritizing employment of local workers in the development of mines in rural areas 2) devoting part of the mines' income to development of the surrounding villages 3) mitigating environmental damages by materializing the principles of green, sustainable and responsible mining 4) increasing participation of local people in the decision making, planning and implementation of mining programs.