The most important proposed changes in the bill amending the Act – Geological and Mining Law and some other acts
In the draft of the Act on amending the Geological and Mining Law (hereinafter: p.g.g.) and some other acts implements a number of significant changes to the existing legal solutions. The most important are undoubtedly:
1) adoption of legal regulations, from which it follows that the activity in the underground tourist route constitutes a separate type of activity regulated by the Act.
The proposed solution would be reflected primarily in the regulation of art. 1 p.g.g., art. 6 p.g.g. (By entering the legal definition of the term „underground tourist route”) and in the new chapter VIa p.g.g. entitled Underground Tourist Routes.
2) the project assumes the extension of the catalog of mineral deposits covered by the mining property, due to the State Treasury (referred to in Article 10 paragraph 1 p.g.g), by including amber in it.
The proposed changes will allow the transfer of duties related to the issuance of a concession for the exploration, identification and extraction of amber to the Minister for the Environment.
3) adding to the provisions of the Act a number of sanctions, both of a criminal and administrative nature, aimed at eliminating the illegal exploitation of amber.
4) clarifying the provisions regarding the evidence attached to the concession application.
The draft proposes a solution consisting in allowing the extension of expiring licenses for hydrocarbon extraction based solely on the entrepreneur’s declaration submitted to the concession authority that he is applying for the right to the property necessary for him to continue mining operations. However, for all new concessions (all minerals), a solution was adopted where the concession authority receives evidence (more credible than just the entrepreneur’s statement) that the owner of the property knows that the entrepreneur is applying for the right to his real estate, within which he is to be intended concession activity.
5) clarifying the provisions regarding concessions for underground non-reservoir storage of substances and underground storage of waste.
