> Western open pit mining operations will have environmental remediation plans that are likely bonded.
New pits opened within the last two decades probably .. but possibly in ways that can be dodged.
Older pits nearing the end of 50 or 70 year life spans .. unlikey.
These are often "sold" to cut out companies that have no real assets to speak of and soon go bankrupt .. leaving the former owners in the clear.
Eg:
Once the largest open pit lead-zinc mine in the world, Faro Mine is now the site of one of the most complex abandoned mine remediation projects in Canada. The 25 square kilometre mine site located in south-central Yukon on traditional territory of KaskaNations was abandoned in 1998 and has since been in care and maintenance.
In 2022, we were contracted by Public Services and Procurement Canada on behalf of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada to lead the team developing the remediation plan design and quality assurance support services.
It's the same with offshore rigs in marine environs being abandoned for the public purse to deal with.
In theory it shouldn't be happening and bonds should have been held in escrow, in practice many western countries (New Zealand, Australia, elsewhere .. ) are seeing projects ending with no remediation.