This Law here regulates the following: conditions and method of performing geological research, the encouragement and promotion of geological research in order to ensure their optimal utilization in accordance with the principles of sustainable development and protection of the environment; encouraging and promoting the exploitation of mineral resources, as well as strengthening safety measures, environmental protection and human health; encouraging and promoting the processing of mineral raw materials, as well as the strengthening of safety measures, environmental protection and human health; supervision and conditions during the performance of related geological research, exploitation and processing of mineral resources; measures and the way to prevent or reduce to the smallest possible extent the harmful impact on the environment and human health that may occur as a consequence of exploitation and processing of mineral resources (waste management). This text is divided into eleven main thematic Chapters and a total of 146 articles. Titles of these Chapters are as follows: I. General provisions; II. Geological research; III. Exploitation of mineral raw resources; IV. Fees for performing detailed geological surveys and for concessions for exploitation of mineral resources; V. Limitation of ownership right; VI. Safety on work (safety and health when performing geological exploration and exploitation of mineral raw materials); VII. Protection of the environment and compensation of damages; VIII. Waste from mineral raw materials; IX. Supervision; X. Penalty measures; and XI. Final and transitional provisions. Mineral raw materials are goods of general interest, property of the Republic of Macedonia, regardless of the ownership of the land on which they are located. Mineral raw materials according to the type can be: energy mineral raw materials, namely: all types of fossil coals, carbons in solid, liquid and gaseous state, radioactive elements (uranium and thorium), all types of bituminous and oil shale and other gases found in the earth; metallic mineral raw materials namely: iron, manganese, nickel, chromium, lead, zinc, copper, tungsten, tin, platinum, molybdenum, antimony, thallium, arsenic, mercury, silver, gold and other types of metals that can appear during operation; man-made mineral resources namely: mineral raw materials that arise in the processing process of energy or metallic mineral resources, including the tailings waste that occurs during exploitation and processing of architectural-decorative stone; non-metallic mineral raw materials: limestone-calcite, limestone-dolomite, quartz, quartzite, quartz sand, diabase, feldspar, mica, distene, diatomaceous earth, talc, opal breccia, basalt, graphite, perlite, tuff, gypsum, marl, sulphur, barite, magnesite, fluorite, andesite, gneiss, asbestos, all types of clays and others; architectural-decorative stone: marble, granite, gabbro, travertine, onyx, basalt, syanite, breccia and others; mineral, thermo-mineral, thermal waters and mineral waters and CO2 gas; sand and gravel that are not found on the beds and banks of surface water bodies (rivers, lakes and accumulations) and the gathering quartz. It is of public interest: performing detailed geological research and exploitation of energy metallic, technogenic mineral raw materials and thermo-mineral and thermal waters and when the exploitation of the mineral raw material is of strategic importance and is necessary for the realization of projects of public interest determined by another law.
Macedonia del Norte · 2013-09-20