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| home | news lMining companies vow not to mine in world heritage areasTRANSCRIPT Reporter: Kirrin McKechnie 21 August 2003 - TANYA NOLAN: In an environmental coup, 15 of the world's biggest mining companies have vowed not to mine in world heritage areas. The companies, including BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Pasminco have signed the agreement preventing them from operating in or even exploring sites that carry United Nations World Heritage Site Status, such as the Great Barrier Reef and Kakadu. While the pledge has been welcomed by most conservationists, some are still sceptical. As Kirrin McKechnie reports. KIRRIN MCKECHNIE: The mining for uranium at Jabiluka, in the World Heritage listed, Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory, was one of Australia's most controversial environmental issues of the 80s and 90s Now, the mining industry itself is moving to ensure that never happens again. The International Council on Mining and Metals, comprising 15 of the world's biggest mining companies, has signed an undertaking to treat World Heritage Sites as no go areas. Jacqui Katona is an Aboriginal activist, who led the fight against uranium mining at Jabiluka. JACQUI KATONA: I think it creates a superficial idea that mining companies are in fact in favour of protecting world heritage, when in fact mining companies don't understand the concept of world heritage, and the fact thatit's not something that you put up on a museum shelf behind glass and lookat for the rest of your life, it's actually living, breathing, surviving dynamic social change in indigenous communities as well. And I have not come across a mining company who's prepared to accommodate that. KIRRIN MCKECHNIE: Jacqui Katona thinks it's a stunt. JACQUI KATONA: It goes along with the green-wash that mining companies are involved in, where they purport to be good corporate citizens undertaking sustainable mining. And the fact is that it's an oxymoron. KIRRIN MCKECHNIE: The World Wide Fund for Nature's Michael Rae supports the pledge by the mining companies, but thinks it's only a very small step. MICHAEL RAE: Well, certainly we would any commitment by these mining companies to protect World Heritage areas. But I must say we would hope they would go further and extend that recognition and protection to all National Parks and other protected areas because certainly they also deserve to be protected from mining exploration and exploitation. KIRRIN MCKECHNIE: But Paul Cristofani from the Minerals Council of Australia says the sceptics are misguided and there will be real environmental outcomes. PAUL CRISTOFANI: I am in contact with companies on a daily basis from small to medium and right up to the global giants in the mining industry, who all, to my experience, are walking the walk of sustainable development - the heart's in the right place, and the commitment is there. TANYA NOLAN: Paul Cristofani is from the Minerals Council of Australia. Source: ABC Radio PM Mining firms agree to observe world heritage sites Story by Nick Trevethan 22 August, 2003 - LONDON - Fifteen of the world's largest metal miners and producers have signed an agreement not to operate in world heritage sites like the Taj Mahal and Great Barrier Reef, the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) said this week. Signatories to the agreement, which resulted from talks with the World Conservation Union (IUCN), pledged not to explore or mine at existing sites that carry United Nations World Heritage site status. The World Heritage Convention is a U.N. initiative to protect natural and cultural heritage. There are 754 World Heritage sites, including the Taj Mahal in India and Egyptian Pyramids, the Great Barrier Reef off Australia and Yellowstone National Park in the United States. The ICMM said in a statement its members recognised the role of properly designated and managed protected areas in conservation strategies and the importance of national and global protected area systems. ICMM comprises Alcoa Inc BLT.L , Anglo American PLC AAL.L , AngloGold, BHP Billiton Ltd, Freeport-McMoRan FTX.N , Mitsubishi Materials 5711.T , Newmont NEM.N Nippon Mining & Metals, Noranda NRD.TO , Pasminco PAS.AX ,Placer Dome PDG.TO , Rio Tinto RIO.AX , Sumitomo Metal Mining 5713.T , Umicore and WMC Resources WMR.AX . "The commitments made by ICMM establish important precedents, not only for the mining industry, but also other extractive industries," Lisa Cullimore, spokeswoman at Rio Tinto Ltd said. Friends of the Earth International mining coordinator, Isaac Rojas said: "We welcome any move that takes mining pressure off such areas, however we still want to see a halt to all resource extraction, not only because of the effect on environment and biodiversity, but also the negative effect on local communities. Our call is, no more mining." Matt Taylor, manager for sustainable development at BHP Billiton said: "The ICMM has a dialogue with the World Conservation Union to look at other protected area classifications. World Heritage sites are one high profile form of classification, but there are others and we fully support that dialogue." Source: PlanetArk.org Landmark 'no-go' pledge from leading mining companiesPRESS RELEASE 20 August 2003 - London - Corporate membership of the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) - comprised of 15 of the world's largest mining and metal producing companies – has signed an undertaking to recognise existing World Heritage properties as 'no-go' areas. The announcement results from a dialogue process with IUCN – The World Conservation Union – started earlier this year. It includes an undertaking 'not to explore or mine in World Heritage properties' and a commitment to take all possible steps to ensure that operations are not incompatible with the outstanding universal values of World Heritage properties. ICMM members recognise the role of properly designated and managed pro tected areas in conservation strategies and the importance of national and global protected area systems. They further recognise that, in some cases, exploration and mining development may be incompatible with the objectives for which areas are designated for protection. ICMM is committed to working with IUCN to strengthen its system of protected area categorisation. ICMM members recognise that sufficient reform of this system will lead to recognition of categories of protected areas as 'no-go' areas and o thers with a multiple-use designation. IUCN Director General, Achim Steiner, welcomed the decision. He said: "Today's announcement by ICMM sets an important precedent. By making this 'no-go' pledge, 15 leading mining and metal producing companies of the world have now created a threshold for corporate responsibility against which they and, indeed, others in the extractive industry will be assessed. While many issues and objectives remain to be addressed, this is an important milestone". According to Francesco Bandarin, Director of UNESCO World Heritage Centre, the commitment by ICMM member companies 'not to explore or mine in World Heritage properties' is a major step forward. "It represents considerable progress since our first meetings with the mining industry in 1998. We hope that such a clear statement by the major mining companies in the world will significantly reduce direct or indirect impacts by mining on World Heritage sites all over the world," he said. The ICMM has committed itself to work with IUCN and others in developing best practice guidance to enhance industry's contribution to biodiversity conservation, including in and around protected areas. The ICMM is also committed to working with IUCN, governments, NGOs and others to develop transparent and fair science -based decision-making processes and assessment tools that better integrate biodiversity conservation and mining into land-use planning and management strategies. Sir Robert Wilson, Chairman of ICMM said: "We understand that the analysis of all options for land use will sometimes mean that mining projects cannot proceed because unique and sensitive biological or cultural values would be compromised if they did. We need and intend to earn the trust of other participants in the debate so we can contribute to sustainable development." Ends Notes to Editors ICMM's 15 Corporate Members are:
For further information, please contact: ICMM POSITION STATEMENT ON MINING AND PROTECTED AREAS In accordance with the ICMM Principles and the commitment to measure corporate performance against these principles, ICMM corporate members have agreed to the following recognition statements and commitments with respect to Mining and Protected Areas: Recognition Statements 1. The Plan of Implementation agreed to at the World Summit on Sustainable Development recognises that minerals are essential for modern living and that mining, minerals and metals are important to the economic and social development of many countries. This is often true in developing countries where, in some instances, there may also be serious issues regarding biodiversity loss in protected areas. 2. ICMM member companies have made considerable progress in reducing the environmental and biodiversity impacts of their operations and many have become leaders in the development and application of state of the art land rehabilitation and ecosystem reconstruction techniques. Today, other avenues are being actively pursued to enhance contributions to biodiversity conservation, including assessments and conservation of unique flora and fauna, research and development and supporting protected area site management programmes. 3. ICMM members recognise the role of properly designated and managed protected areas in insitu conservation strategies. 4. Comprehensive and representative lists of various types of designated protected areas are important to ensure that ecosystems, habitats and species are protected from damage and loss, particularly those which are remarkable in terms of richness, rarity, sensitivity and are relatively unmodified by human influence. 5. ICMM members further recognise that, in some cases, exploration and mining development may be incompatible with the objectives for which areas are designated for protection, even after all technically and economically feasible steps to reduce adverse impacts have been considered. 6. National and global systems for the evaluation, designation, classification and management of areas listed for protection are needed to ensure consistency of approach to land access decisions. 7. Such systems should be transparent, rigorous, based on scientific and cultural understanding, backed by legal controls, and should contribute to the equitable resolution of different land-use, conservation and development objectives. 8. An understanding of the mineral development potential of areas proposed for listing for protection, including World Heritage properties, as well as the availability of clean mining and processing technologies should be some of the factors considered in assessments and related decision-making processes. 9. The decisions taken over the evaluation, designation, management and modifications of protected areas should also be based on the principles of sustainable development and take into account the opinions of and consequences for local communities, including indigenous peoples, and the regions involved. Development opportunities, if forgone, should be addressed by alternative plans for poverty alleviation and social development. 10. Of the existing international systems of protected area designation only that of the World Heritage Convention and its Operational Guidelines currently meet all of these requirements sufficiently fo r ICMM member companies to recognise existing World Heritage properties as 'No-go' areas. ICMM Commitments 1. In accordance with Principle 7 of the new ICMM Sustainable Development Framework, ICMM members will respect legally designated protected areas. 2. ICMM member companies undertake not to explore or mine in World Heritage properties. All possible steps will be taken to ensure that existing operations in World Heritage properties as well as existing and future operations adjacent to World Heritage properties are not incompatible with the outstanding universal value for which these properties are listed and do not put the integrity of these properties at risk. 3. ICMM is committed to working with IUCN - The World Conservation Union - to address application issues and to strengthen the IUCN system of protected area categorisation. ICMM recognises that sufficient reform of this system will lead to recognition of categories of protected areas as 'No-go' areas and others with a multiple -use designation. 4. ICMM is committed to working with IUCN, governments, intergovernmental organisations, development and conservation NGOs and others to develop transparent, inclusive, informed and equitable decision-making processes and assessment tools that better integrate biodiversity conservation, protected areas and mining into land-use planning and management strategies, including 'No-go' areas. 5. ICMM will also work with IUCN and others in developing best practice guidance to enhance industry's contribution to biodiversity conservation, including in and around protected areas.
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