Stakeholder newsletter: early October 2023
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Dear friends,
You may know that up to 95% of a mining and metals company’s emissions can be from upstream and downstream in the value chain. So it is clear that to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement, tackling Scope 3 emissions needs to galvanise collaboration on a scale that we’ve never seen before.
Transparency and action begin with us. That’s why our recently published Scope 3 Emissions Accounting and Reporting Guidance is so critical. Minerals and metals are the foundation of so many industries, and are fundamental to the energy transition which is why reducing their overall climate impact is so important.
I hope that this Guidance helps people and companies work more closely together to reduce total emissions. For our part, ICMM members are committed to reporting on Scope 3 emissions by the end of 2023, and this Guidance is a milestone in achieving that ambition.
While reporting and emissions go hand in hand, it is a little less common to think about data’s relationship with nature. However, measuring our impact and dependency on nature is a critical step to building a Nature Positive future.
This is why ICMM is the official piloting partner for the mining and metals sector of the Taskforce for Nature-related Financial Disclosure. This week, they have launched their final recommendations to help organisations and companies report and act on nature, and ultimately shift financial flows toward nature positive outcomes.
Our industry has a unique role to play in conserving and restoring nature, and there are many good examples. This is something I saw firsthand in a recent visit to Norsk Hydro’s Paragominas mine in Brazil. In a true case of the circular economy in action, their innovations around tailings management allow for the restoration of nature at their bauxite mine, meaning forests were thriving on mined land. I wrote about this industry first in my recent blog.
And while Hydro taught me lessons from our rapidly approaching future, visiting ICMM member Sumitomo gave me quite the opposite experience. In Japan, Sumitomo have 400 years of experience to lean on, taking age-old principles of doing business honourably as a source for their modern corporate philosophy. As we search for solutions to build a different future, let’s not forget to lookback for possible answers and inspiration.
Back to looking forward, we have a number of exciting events coming up over the next month, including with The Economist Sustainability Week: Countdown to COP28 and The Financial Times Mining Summit. I look forward to seeing many of you in person and online virtually in October.
Warmly,
Ro
Features
ICMM publishes Scope 3 Emissions Accounting and Reporting Guidance
Earlier this month, ICMM published Guidance that provides a standardised framework for mining and metals companies to calculate and disclose their value chain emissions.
Scope 3 emissions represent 75% of the emissions profile of a company on average – which can extend to 95% for mining and metals companies depending on their commodity portfolio.
The Guidance sets clear parameters for calculating emissions across the 15 categories of Scope 3 emissions in the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, and supports companies in applying the Protocol’s principles of Relevance, Completeness, Transparency, Accuracy and Consistency.
Find out more here.
Taskforce for Nature-related Financial Disclosure (TNFD) publishes disclosure framework to measure impacts on nature
ICMM is TNFD’s official piloting partner for the mining and metals sector. Our members’ experiences, together with input from investors, NGOs and other companies, has helped to inform upcoming sector guidance that will improve the way companies manage and disclose potential impacts, risk and dependencies.
Hayley Zipp, Director of Environment, said: “The launch of TNFD’s global framework is an important step on the journey towards halting and reversing nature loss.
A nature positive approach is not just essential for people and planet – there is also a strong business imperative too. As minerals and metals are the foundation of almost every aspect of day-to-day life and our transition to a green economy, it's clear that our industry has a unique role to play in supporting a nature positive agenda.”
Find out more about TNFD’s framework here.
ICMM publishes Spanish version of our Human Rights Due Diligence Guidance
Every person deserves to be treated with dignity and respect. This means that all businesses, regardless of where they operate, have a responsibility to respect human rights.
ICMM’s updated Human Rights Due Diligence Guidance is an important resource that will help mining companies to better integrate human rights into existing risk management approaches. By publishing the Guidance in Spanish, we are able to extend the reach of the Guidance to more mine sites around the world.
Find out more and read the Guidance here.
Blog: What 400 years of history can teach us about sustainability for the future
Reflecting on his recent visit to ICMM member Sumitomo in Japan, Rohitesh Dhawan reflects on how the company’s longstanding philosophy embraces Mining with Principles in the modern world.
Read the blog here.
Blog: A little thought goes a long way in restoring nature
Can nature truly recover on land that’s been mined? Many would understandably think the answer to this question is a worry-filled ‘no’, but Rohitesh Dhawan saw firsthand how one mine in the Amazon is showing that with a little thought, it can not only recover but truly thrive.
Read the blog here.
Upcoming Events
The Economist’s Sustainability Week: Countdown to COP28
London, UK, and virtual • 2 – 5 October
COP28 is the critical climate event of the year. In the run-up, companies are preparing announcements, tightening their emission-reduction targets and planning new investments. Ultimately, preparing business to stay ahead of climate commitments and on top of the energy transition at this time is vital to its long-term survival. Ro Dhawan will be speaking on a panel on ethical electrification and how that involves ensuring clean and ethical critical mineral supply chains. Register here.
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Global Business Leaders in Mining Diversity Conference
Virtual • 5 October
Lawrenda Adzomani will be speaking at a session at the 2nd Annual Global Business Leaders in Mining Diversity Conference on the transformative power of change management to build an inclusive and thriving workplace culture. Register here.
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FT Mining Summit
London, UK, and virtual • 5 – 6 October
Investment in the mining industry is critical for the world to produce the vast quantities of minerals and metals needed for the energy transition. As the uncertain global economic outlook presents challenges, Ro Dhawan will be speaking at the FT Mining Summit on how the industry needs to realign production and distribution to fit the new macroenvironment. Register here.
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SAIMM Conference: Next Generation Tailings – Opportunity Or Risk?
Johannesburg, South Africa & Virtual • 24 – 25 October
Tabatha Chavez Matus will be giving a key note presentation at the SAIMM Conference on next generation tailings, presenting onICMM's tailings portfolio, innovations, and management strategies. Register here.
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IMARC
Sydney, Australia • 31 – 2 November
Ro Dhawan and Danielle Martin will be speaking at IMARC on achieving trust in the industry, creating social value and environmental resilience, and developing better Indigenous partnerships. Register here.
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