MEP Ana Miranda Paz (Verts/ALE) has asked the European Commission whether it considers the opening or reopening of mines near population centres a model for achieving EU critical materials sovereignty, citing the planned Coéns kaolin open-cast mine in Laxe, Galicia, which would be located less than 40 metres from a rural settlement and close to the protected Redondela lagoon.
In a parliamentary question dated 19 June 2026, Miranda Paz highlighted that the mine would produce 9,000 tonnes of kaolin per year using explosives just 20 metres from residential houses. She noted that residents and the Plataforma Contra a Mina de Coéns have expressed grave concern over the serious impact on public health and the environment, arguing that the simplified environmental impact study shows unacceptable consequences for both residents and the wetland listed in the Galician inventory of wetlands.
first, whether the Commission is aware of the project's proximity to homes; second, whether the Commission views such mining near population centres as a model for achieving sovereignty in European critical materials. The question reflects a tension between local environmental and health protection and EU strategic autonomy in raw materials supply.
Under European Parliament rules, the Commission is expected to reply within approximately six weeks. The answer will signal the Commission's stance on balancing local environmental concerns with critical raw materials extraction, and may indicate whether EU-level guidelines or funding conditions could apply to such projects.