Minister rejects criticism for issuing prospecting licences for lithium

Ireland cannot count itself out when it comes to supplying critically important raw materials such as lithium, and must consider mining them where it can be done in an environmentally sensitive way, Minister for Environment and Energy Eamon Ryan has said.

Extraction and further processing of minerals and metals including lithium “will be key to deliver the clean technology, mobility and digital solutions necessary for the transition of all industrial sectors towards climate neutrality, ie net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, and a circular economy”, he said.

Responding to criticism for issuing prospecting licences to two applicants for lithium exploration in parts of Wicklow, Carlow and Wexford, when the Government has banned oil and gas exploration, Mr Ryan said lithium has been designated by the EU as a critical raw material.

But, he said, “no economically-viable deposits of lithium have been discovered in Ireland which could potentially support a future mining operation”.

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In the wider context, he said: “Ireland has an important role to play globally on providing a fair share of both minerals and renewable energy. The careful exploitation of our natural resources rather than the offshoring to countries with weaker environmental regimes is part of being a global citizen. We consume global resources we have the duty to contribute to them too.”

Lithium is widely used in consumer electronics, e-transport and in batteries for renewable power back-up.

There are no current State mining licences or leases for lithium mining, nor have any applications for a State mining licences or leases been submitted to the Department of Energy.

A number of prospecting licences for lithium exploration are in force within the State, Mr Ryan said, based mainly around the margins of a geological area known as “the Leinster granite”.

[ Concern lithium exploration in Co Wicklow may threaten ‘one of Ireland most beautiful places’ ]

Blackstairs Lithium Ltd holds a total of 11 contiguous licences which extend from southern Co Carlow into south Co Wicklow, he confirmed. Eight of its licences fell due for renewal in 2021.

Mr Ryan had advertised his intention to renew the licences in local newspapers in December 2021. During the subsequent public consultation period, 187 submissions were received by the Department of Energy. Following a detailed review of the submissions received by the Geoscience Regulation Office, all eight licences were renewed in late 2022. These activities were temporary “and involve minimal disturbance”, the Minister said.

The Government’s policy statement on mineral exploration endorses “the contribution that sustainable exploration and mining can make to our society, economic development and the transition to a circular economy and net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, through the supply of the raw materials necessary for our sustainable development”.

[ Lithium, the power behind your EV, discovered on Wexford-Wicklow border ]

It also supports the objectives of the EU’s critical raw materials (CRM) act that once adopted will have direct legal effect in Ireland. “Its main provisions will improve knowledge, efficiency and co-operation on CRM extraction, processing and recycling”.

“Mineral exploration activities in Ireland take place within a framework of Irish and EU legislation, including those implemented to ensure that the environment, including water quality, is protected,” he said. A mine for a scheduled mineral is subject to obtaining three separate State authorisations: planning permission, environmental licence and mining licence/lease/permission.

These authorisations cover the full life-of-mine activity from development to closure, restoration and aftercare, and include provision for financial liabilities in respect of securing funding from the operator to safely decommission the site, he said. “Authorisation stage and operational stage also include for public participation and public access to information. This supports securing the ‘social-licence-to-operate’ or social capital ambitions of all stakeholders.”

The planning code also provided an important framework for assessment of potential environmental impacts, while planning decisions provided for mitigation measures to address any impacts identified and are subject to enforcement to address noncompliance. “The planning process is of particular importance in ensuring that biodiversity is protected and enhanced when mining activity is proposed,” he said.

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