Historically there has been a number of mines working in Greenland. Many Greenlanders hope that mining will become a main industry in the country in the future. Mining produces large volumes of waste. The nature of the waste is decided by the local mineralogy and also the specific processes implemented in the mine. In many aspects mining in Greenland and the Arctic does not differ from mine elsewhere in the world. However, there are some issues that need to be paid attention to. The greenlandic and arctic environment is considered to be more pristine and sensitive. Also, many of the chemicals that are used in the mining industry have not been tested towards arctic species and many of the treatment remediation and rehabilitation technologies that are used elsewhere are not as efficient in the Arctic climate. There may also be some advantages of mining in the Arctic. Some of the chemical reactions that are environmentally damaging take place at a slower pace in the waste in the Arctic due to the low temperature and it may in some places even be possible to deposit the waste inside the permafrost where can be left more or less inert. Like elsewhere in the world there have been historic examples of improper and insufficient environmental management of mines in Greenland. One example is the mine in Mestersvig, which was running in the late 1950s and early 60s. This was a lead mine and there was no environmental management plan for this mine at this time in history. So a lot of material was spilled accidentally and more or less deliberately sometimes, and there was quite some contamination with lead in the surrounding sea, which can still be monitored. Another example is the Maamorilik mine which was running in the 1970s and 80s. Here environmental management was actually implemented and monitoring was done. During the monitoring it was observed that contamination occurred from dust at the mining site, but also surprisingly from the tailings that were deposited in a deep fjord nearby the mining site. Therefore, the processes at the mine were changed during the mining period. The contamination at Maamorilik can also still be monitored today. Nowadays, an extensive environmental impact assessment has to be made prior to getting permission to mine in Greenland. The assessment and the plan needs to go to a public hearing process and it needs to contain a study plan on how to study and monitor the environment prior to starting the mining, a monitoring plan for the environment during the mining and after the mining has ceased. Also, it needs to include a plan for handling of the waste of the mine and on how to recultivate the mining area after the mining has closed down. High environmental standards are aimed for in the future mines in Greenland, and one example of this is the ambitious wastewater discharge levels that have been implemented recently.