64 At the same time, Peru has a Guide for the Assessment of Risks to Health and the Environment (MINAM, 2015), developed within the regulatory framework for contaminated sites management, which defines methodologies for risk assessment and remediation target setting. While current regulations allow the optional application of these studies as support tools for remediation (MINAM, 2024), their use in mining sites has been mainly limited to the operational stage. Consequently, their potential to inform closure, post-closure, and future land-use decisions remains underutilized, and no clear operational linkage exists between risk assessment instruments and mine closure planning. This gap represents both a challenge and an opportunity. The prospective application of risk assessment across closure, post-closure, and future use stages can become a key tool for anticipating risks, guiding rehabilitation and closure design decisions, building trust, and generating shared value with surrounding communities. Aligned with the Post-Mining Areas, Reclamation and Revitalisation thematic track of WMC 2026, this paper proposes a methodological framework for the implementation of risk assessment integration into mine closure planning, aiming to move beyond regulatory compliance, strengthen social legitimacy through community participation, and accelerate the transition toward safe, productive, and socially accepted post-mining landscapes. 2. METHODOLOGY Human health and ecological risk assessment provides a structured framework to determine whether the level of contamination present at a site poses a risk to human health or the environment and, if so, whether that risk is acceptable or requires the implementation of remediation or risk management measures. This methodology integrates qualitative and quantitative analyses, considering the nature, magnitude, and likelihood of adverse effects on human and ecological receptors resulting from exposure to contaminants through multiple pathways (MINAM, 2015). When applied to mining operations entering the closure stage, risk assessment should be conducted prospectively, explicitly accounting for the evolution of site conditions over time. In this study, the assessment is structured across three differentiated stages: closure, post-closure, and future land use. Each stage is characterized by specific sources of contamination, substances of concern, receptors, and exposure pathways, and therefore requires a tailored assessment approach. This staged framework allows evaluation not only of areas subject to closure measures, but also of areas that, although not included in the original closure plan, may require additional rehabilitation or remediation to enable safe future land uses. Recent literature consistently indicates that risk is a function of land use. Early definition of post-closure land use determines exposure pathways, relevant receptors, and closure performance objectives (ICMM, 2025). The ICMM explicitly addresses this relationship through dedicated tools —such as Screening Alternatives for Repurposing— designed to align closure vision, objectives, and risk assessment with reasonably anticipated future uses (ICMM, 2025).
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