Mining ministry moves to overhaul regulation after audit findings

The Ministry of Mining is overhauling its Mines and Geology Division (MGD) after a performance audit exposed significant weaknesses in the regulation, monitoring, and enforcement of mining and quarrying activities.

The audit, conducted by the Auditor General’s Department, assessed the MGD’s licensing, monitoring, and enforcement actions between 2019 and 2020 and 2023 and 2024, with figures tracked up to December 2025.

Auditor General Pamela Monroe Ellis found that three mining lessees owe US$13.7 million (approximately J$2.2 billion) in penalties for failing to rehabilitate 264.14 hectares of mined-out land.

The report also found that some operators continued mining or quarrying for as long as six years after their leases or licences had expired while the MGD failed to systematically track royalty arrears and quarry tax obligations.

In a statement on Thursday, the ministry said an immediate action plan was under way to overhaul sector oversight, enforce compliance, and restore accountability. It said a plan has been put in place to address identified gaps.

The ministry said it was reviewing the measures already implemented, as well as those currently being pursued, against the auditor general’s findings and recommendations.

“This review will help to identify any areas requiring further strengthening, and additional corrective action will be taken where necessary to ensure that the appropriate systems and safeguards are in place,” the ministry said.

It also committed to providing additional information once the review is completed.

However, Jamaica Environment Trust (JET) Chief Executive Officer Dr Theresa Rodriguez-Moodie said the audit confirmed weaknesses that Jamaicans have been experiencing for years.

The report, which was tabled in Parliament on Tuesday, identified significant gaps in the MGD’s regulatory framework, particularly in enforcement, documentation, and risk management.

ENVIRONMENTAL BREACHES

Rodriguez-Moodie said complaints about environmental breaches had been made repeatedly, yet the systems for recording, investigating, and enforcing those breaches remained inadequate.

She argued that this was also an access-to-justice issue, noting that justice extends beyond what happens in a courtroom.

“We have a constitutional right to enjoy a healthy environment, and that requires effective systems to address environmental harm when it is reported,” she contended on Wednesday.

Rodriguez-Moodie also questioned whether the proposed Mining Matters mobile app – which the MGD says will make it easier for citizens to report, track, and document mining-related concerns or violations in real time – would address the underlying problem.

She said lodging a complaint was not the same as addressing it, pointing to gaps in what happens afterwards, including in investigation, enforcement, and follow-up.

“If we have a right to a healthy environment, there must be effective systems to respond when that environment is being harmed,” she said.

Rodriguez-Moodie said the US$13.7 million in penalties owed by three mine lessees was particularly concerning as they were intended to provide an incentive for operators to meet their rehabilitation obligations and warned that where those commitments remained outstanding, the environmental impacts also remained.

“We are talking about degraded landscapes, impacts on water resources, and land that cannot readily return to productive use. Ultimately, when the polluter does not pay, and rehabilitation does not happen, the public is left to bear the environmental cost,” she noted.

Sociologist and development scientist Peter Espeut said he was shocked by the amount in penalties owed by mine lessees.

Espeut, a Gleaner columnist, said he had been writing about unreclaimed mined-out lands for years and accused successive governments of failing to adequately address the problem.

He said the situation had persisted for decades while acknowledging the challenge faced by the Government in enforcing rehabilitation requirements against bauxite companies whose departure could have economic consequences.

The auditor general recommended that the MGD enforce rehabilitation obligations and financial-assurance requirements.

She also recommended that the division maintain a single auditable rehabilitation register showing, for each relevant mining area, the area mined out, the date mining ended, certification status, and penalties accrued.

Penalty assessments should be issued where rehabilitation has not been certified within the required timeframe, with recovery pursued through security deposits or restoration bonds where operators remain non-compliant, Monroe Ellis said.

She further recommended that the aggregate position be reported to the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Mining every six months.

The audit also found that the MGD did not systematically track royalty arrears and quarry tax obligations, increasing the risk of revenue leakage and uncollectible balances.

As of March 2026, US$828,000 in royalty principal and US$2.58 million in interest and penalties were outstanding from two operators.

editorial@gleanerjm.com