Members of global mining body the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) will publish details of their progress in conforming with the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management for tailings facilities with the highest potential consequences in the event of a failure, by August 5.

The standard was developed after the tragic failure of a tailings facility at Brumadinho, Brazil, in 2019. It was developed through an independent process convened by the ICMM and environmental organisations the United Nations Environment Programme and Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). 

The standard sets a high bar and sets 77 requirements, integrating social, environmental and local economic and technical considerations aimed at achieving the goal of zero harm to people and the environment. 

When it was published in August 2020, ICMM members committed to conforming with the standard for tailings facilities classified as ‘extreme’ or ‘very high’ consequences by August this year, and all other facilities by August 2025.

This commitment galvanised immediate and sustained action by ICMM members – representing one-third of the global mining industry – towards achieving and maintaining conformance with the standard. 

Although members have undertaken sustained effort to bring their highest consequence facilities into conformance with the Standard in just three years, the ICMM anticipates that some companies will not achieve full conformance with the standard’s requirements. 

In addition to the disclosures required, ICMM members will disclose the status of conformance for each facility within the two highest consequence categories, and a summary of timebound measures to address any gaps, on or before August 5 this year.

Implementation of the standard has already resulted in transformative improvements across the global mining sector in tailings engineering, management, governance and monitoring. It has also elevated tailings management to the highest levels of company oversight and accountability, while promoting greater transparency, collaboration and meaningful engagement with stakeholders. 

“ICMM members have an unequivocal commitment to implementing the Standard. I am encouraged by the considerable progress that companies have made so far, and acknowledge that meeting our three-year milestone has proven to be ambitious and challenging because the standard sets a very high bar,” states ICMM CEO and president Rohitesh Dhawan.

“We still have a way to go, and members are working diligently to bring their tailings facilities into full conformance. We recognise that trust stems from transparency, which will be foremost in how members disclose the progress they have made, and how they intend to meet the full requirements of the Standard,” he adds.

Church of England Pensions Board chief responsible investment officer and Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management and Global Tailings Management Institute PRI representative Adam Matthews comments that this is an important stage in corporate compliance with the standard.

“I welcome the transparency as to the progress that has been made by ICMM members and the areas where further work is still needed. I have seen firsthand the extensive efforts by companies to implement the Standard and some of the challenges.

“As a result, I am quite clear that investors would far rather have full implementation done well than rushed as a tick-box exercise. We are keen to see evidence of implementation from non-ICMM members and will be engaging those companies on their intended implementation ahead of the planned formation of a Global Tailings Management Institute, which will further support wider industry efforts and sharing of best practice,” adds Matthews.

The ICMM says it remains committed to driving collective progress in tailings management, prioritising collaboration and facilitating shared learning across the industry.

By embracing these challenges and working together, ICMM and its members aim to create safer and more sustainable tailings management practices, concludes the ICMM.

LOCAL COMMITMENTS
South African gold miner Gold Fields has commited to implementing the global standards at all of its tailings storage facilities (TSFs).

“As a member of the ICMM, Gold Fields fully supports the standard and what is planned to be achieved.

“Over the last three years, our teams have worked tirelessly to ensure our four TSFs with the highest consequence classification – three TSFs at Tarkwa, in Ghana, and one TSF at Cerro Corona, in Peru – conform to the high standards set by the GISTM. 

“During this time, we have also made considerable progress in implementing the standard at our 33 remaining TSFs,” states Gold Fields.

While the gold miner has successfully addressed all elements related to material dam safety and the environment, it has also identified areas for further improvement.

Gold Fields has conducted internal and external third-party reviews to measure its conformance, and also acknowledges that not all requirements have been fully addressed yet.

The miner will provide full and transparent disclosure of our progress and conformance status in line with its commitments on August 3.

Gold Fields’ self-assessed disclosure reports and confirmation justification will be posted on its website.

“We are encouraged to see the transformative improvements in tailings management, engineering, governance and monitoring across the mining industry. We have valued the collaboration with stakeholders and peers in openly sharing our experiences, expertise and lessons learned.

“The tailings standard – as a newly introduced governance and management standard – represents a significant positive step towards raising the standards in tailings management globally. Gold Fields remains committed to the standard and the ideals it has set out to achieve,” the miner says.