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Home > Projects > ARCHIVED: Mining boom in Mongolia

ARCHIVED: Mining boom in Mongolia

With huge amounts of unexploited natural resources (gold, copper, coal and more) the Mongolian economy is estimated to grow massively in the years to come. But will it also benefit the people in Mongolia? Our work shows how mining operations lead to pollution and displacement for local herders and exacerbate water scarcity issues.


Father and daughter, resettled by Oyu Tolgoi

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Background

With huge amounts of unexploited natural resources (gold, copper, coal and more) the Mongolian economy is estimated to grow massively in the years to come. But will it also benefit the people in Mongolia? Our work shows how mining operations lead to pollution and displacement for local herders and exacerbate water scarcity issues.

Dust & displacement
Water scarcity
European financing

Dust, displacement and intimidation in the Gobi Altai mountains

Nomadic herders in the Gobi Altai mountains are facing pollution and displacement by the Tayan Nuur iron ore mine that receives financing from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

While the mining company Altain Khuder responds to criticism with intimidation, the EBRD is not doing enough to protect herders’ rights.

Read more:
When the dust settles
A multimedia story about herders impacted by the Tayan Nuur mine

Dust, displacement, intimidation – Mongolian herders are under pressure by iron ore mine
Blog post | December 9, 2014

Report: Impacts of the Tayan Nuur iron ore mine on nomadic herders’ lives in Mongolia
Study | December 9, 2014

Case study on the impacts of the global iron ore sector: Altain Khuder in Mongolia
SOMO case study | December 17, 2014

A Mongolian woman looking into the camera. An overlaid quote says: "My winter camp looks nothing like a winter camp anymore."

A multimedia story about herders impacted by the Tayan Nuur mine


Also available in Polish

Water scarcity in the South Gobi desert

In the South Gobi desert, the highly intensive mining industry with its immense need for water can pose precarious risks to the livelihoods of herders.

Read more
Spirited away – Mongolia’s mining boom and the people that development left behind (pdf)
Study | January 30, 2012

EBRD financing for mining in Mongolia

By financing several mining projects over the last few years, the EBRD followed other investors’ bias towards the natural resources sector in Mongolia. Instead, it should diversify its portfolio in the country to help Mongolia reduce its dependency on commodity exports.

Read more:
The EBRD in Mongolia: Economic diversity is something else
Blog post | September 18, 2012

Online debate

Following a discussion in the European Parliament on the EBRD’s mining operations, Bankwatch organised a live-streamed google hangout with Mongolian campaigner Sukhgerel Dugersuren.

Latest news

EU green dream is a harsh reality for metal-rich countries

Bankwatch in the media | 24 March, 2021

The tale of Mongolia’s Oyu Tolgoi copper mine highlights the potential toll on people and the environment in Central Asia from Europe’s rush for high-tech climate solutions. Source: EU green dream is a harsh reality for metal-rich countries

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Der Widerstand gegen Bergbau-Großprojekte in der Mongolei: Zehntausende sind aktiv » LabourNet Germany

Bankwatch in the media | 5 March, 2021

Wer hierzulande an die Mongolei denkt, denkt meistens in Schablonen-Mustern: Reitervolk, Dschengis (der große) Khan (dessen „Goldene Horde …

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Doing the same thing and expecting different results: Mongolia plans to curb air pollution with more coal

Blog entry | 3 May, 2017

A new law on air pollution recently adopted by the Mongolian government is in part the result of massive demonstrations against air pollution in the capital. The new policy, however, involves even more reliance on coal.

Read more

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Related publications

Complaint towards EBRD against Mongolian company Altain Khuder and its Tayan Nuur iron ore mine

Official document | 23 December, 2014 | Download PDF

The complaint, filed by seven individuals affected by the mine on 23 December 2014 at the EBRD’s Project Complaint Mechanism (PCM), alleges that the environmental and social impacts of Altain Khuder’s mine are inconsistent with EBRD’s policies. Herders have brought these impacts to the attention of the company on numerous occasions but rather than solving the problems the company has reacted with intimidation and legal action.


When the dust settles – Impacts of the Tayan Nuur iron ore mine on nomadic herders’ lives in Mongolia

Study | 9 December, 2014 | Download PDF

This report from a fact-finding mission to the Gobi Altai mountains in Mongolia describes the impacts the Tayan Nuur iron ore mine has on local nomadic herders, including displacement, dust pollution resulting in diminished livestock, and more. While the mining company Altain Khuder responds to criticism with intimidation, the company’s financier, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, is not doing enough to protect herders’ rights.


New EBRD Environmental and Social policy needs climate muscle and tightened safeguards for protected areas

Bankwatch Mail | 10 May, 2013 |

If there is one sector in which the EBRD has been causing particular controversy in recent years, it is the energy sector. From lignite in Slovenia to hydropower in Georgia and nuclear in Ukraine, the bank has financed a series of projects that have incurred opposition from various quarters. Now that the EBRD is revising its Environmental and Social Policy it’s time to take a look at what needs to be learned from these projects.


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