On March 3, 2020, chair of the Global Tailings Review (GTR), Bruno Oberle will share progress on developing the Global Tailings Standard in Toronto. The Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) is hosting Oberle as part of an expert panel.
“The mining and metals industry has always faced the challenges of working in varied physical environments, and has well established methodologies, tools, data, resources and people in place to identify and manage related risks and opportunities,” said Verónica Martinez, ICMM’s climate change lead, to Mining Magazine.
The draft standard is organized around six topic areas, which include various principles are in turn are supported by a set of requirements.
Here’s an overview of the content covered under each topic area:
- Topic Area I Knowledge base requires operators to develop knowledge about the social, economic and environmental context of a proposed or existing tailings facility, and to conduct detailed site characterization.
- Topic Area II Affected communities focuses on project-affected people. It requires human rights due diligence and meaningful engagement of project-affected people.
- Topic Area III: Design, construction, operation and monitoring of tailings facilities aims to lift the performance bar for designing, constructing, operating and monitoring tailings facilities.
- Topic Area IV: Management and governance focuses on ongoing management and governance of tailings facilities. It defines key roles, essential systems and critical processes.
- Topic Area V: Emergency response and long-term recovery covers emergency preparedness and response in the event of a disaster, the re-establishment of ecosystems, and the long-term recovery of affected communities.
- Topic Area VI: Public disclosure and access to information requires public access to information about tailings facilities in order to fairly inform internal and external stakeholders about risks and impacts, management and mitigation plans, and performance monitoring.
PDAC is a member of the International Council of Mining & Metals (ICMM), which is committed to mitigating carbon dioxide emissions at site level and across the supply chain, building resilience and contributing to the responsible production of the commodities essential for clean energy and sustainable cities.
Building on the experiences and insights of ICMM members and other experts, a new report, Adapting to a Changing Climate: Building resilience in the mining and metals industry, provides an overview of how a changing climate could impact the industry. The report also identifies ways that companies can integrate climate considerations into existing risk management processes and sets out a step-wise process for building climate resilience. For the mining and metals industry, reducing exposure to climate-related risks can reduce costs, preserve or enhance revenues, improve stakeholder relationships and help identify new business opportunities.
For further information, click here.
Featured image from ICMM.
