Linking Mining, Sustainable Development and Energy Conservation

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Linking Mining, Sustainable Development and
Energy Conservation

• Arizona Industries of the Future Conference
• 15 Jun 2004

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• How does sustainable development apply to a
  mining company?
• What role does energy conservation play in
  sustainable mining?

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The Brundtland Report - Our Common Future World
Commission on Environment and Development
1987 Development that meets the needs of the
present without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their own needs.
Rio Earth Summit United Nations 1992 Retained a
commitment to ecological integrity but also
incorporated social and economic dimensions of
sustainability.
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Sustainable Development - Rio Tintos Perspective

• We intend to maintain Rio Tintos leadership
  position not only in commercial terms, but also
  by ensuring our business activities contribute to
  sustainable development. We believe that acting
  responsibly in the social and environmental arena
  adds economic value by creating opportunities,
  minimising risk, and attracting the best
  employees.
• Sir Robert WilsonAGM 17 April, 2003

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Balancing the Elements for Sustainability
Governance

• Pollution Prevention
• Product Stewardship
• Closure Planning
• Land Stewardship

• Safety Health
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Community Involvement
• Education

Environment
Social
Economic

• Shareholder Value
• Resource Efficiency
• Economic Contribution

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Sustainability Energy Efficiency

• Rio Tintos commitment to sustainable business
  practices considers current operations and
  assesses viability of new opportunities and
  projects.
• Energy use plays a key role.
• Energy use is a key measure of sustainable
  performance.
• Energy efficiency reduces natural resource
  depletion and waste production.

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Global Climate Change - Rio Tintos Perspective

• It is prudent to act now to reduce emissions of
  greenhouse gases resulting from human activity
  that may cause detrimental changes to the earths
  climate system.
• National and international policies and measures
  to address climate change present business risks
  and opportunities, which will affect shareholder
  value.
• Rio Tinto will continue to respond to evolving
  climate change issues by seeking to minimise the
  business risks, capturing the opportunities, and
  taking actions that balance social,
  environmental, and economic values.

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Emissions by Source
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Closing

• An excellent resource process is no longer
  enough
• A case for sustainable mining must be made
• With stakeholders
• With markets
• With governments
• Balancing all the elements is essential
• Energy use is a key driver

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Questions?
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Sustainable Development Trends for Mining

• Global Mining Initiative
• Socially Responsible Investment (SRI)
• Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)

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Global Mining Initiative (GMI)

• Major independent review initiated by 9 of the
  biggest companies
• Included research and stakeholder engagement at
  global and regional levels
• Aim was to listen to and understand what others
  thought about the mining industry

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Socially Responsible Investment (SRI)

• Small but growing
• Concern about negative screens
• Mining companies not highly valued
• Development of indicators and arbitrary criteria
• Government reporting initiatives Australian
  round table

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The Global Reporting Initiative

• Becoming a globally accepted framework for
  reporting I.e. Global Compact
• Released at World Summit on Sustainable
  Development 2002
• Economic, environmental, social indicators
• Core indicators, additional indicators
• Sector specific guidelines, protocols
• Informal, or in accordance

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Government GCC Policy Trends
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