The International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) has launched an updated ‘Water Reporting: Good Practice Guide’ to improve the quality and consistency of corporate water reporting and enhance stakeholders’ understanding of, and ability to use, water reports and associated data.

The new iteration of the guide builds on good-practice principles from the ICMM’s 2017 publication, ‘A Practical Guide to Consistent Water Reporting’, as well as practical member learnings from its implementation and is available on the ICMM’s website for use by the wider industry.

The guide broadens the ICMM’s minimum reporting commitments to include new metrics for disclosure, such as holistic reporting of how water is used to meet operational demands and how it is actively managed, and reporting of aggregated water metrics for all sites within a company, as well as a separate aggregated total for all sites situated in water-stressed areas.

The guide also helps mining companies to disclose water data in a consistent way that allows for easier comparison of performance by interested stakeholders.

The guide further builds directly on external reporting guidance and definitions, including the CEO Water Mandate, the Global Reporting Initiative, CDP Water and the Minerals Council of Australia’s Water Accounting Framework.

It captures practical experience from companies operating in diverse geographies, commodities and regulatory systems, and was developed in consultation with industry experts and investors, helping to make this resource a strong global tool.

ICMM COO Aidan Davy said on August 25 that “transparent reporting is important so that stakeholders such as investors, government, local communities and civil society have greater line of sight over mining companies’ water management practices and related data”.

He added that the external reporting landscape was evolving and that the ICMM’s updated guide would help companies strengthen their management of “this precious and shared resource” for the benefit of all users, while reducing corporate risk exposure.

World Wide Fund for Nature global water stewardship lead Alexis Morgan, meanwhile, commented that aligning frameworks and efforts on water was helpful to many stakeholders as the world drove towards solving shared water challenges.

“The ICMM’s ‘Water Reporting: Good Practice Guide’ is a useful reference document in that regard – cross-linking key efforts and resources related to water reporting.”

US-based gold producer Newmont Corporation environment group executive Briana Gunn said: “Having a standardised method of reporting provides a higher level of comparability and increased transparency for member companies.”

In a separate statement on August 25, ICMM environment committee deputy chairperson Daria Grigoreva, who is also gold miner Polyus’ sustainability director, welcomed the ICMM’s updated guide.

She said the updated guide “sets a new best-in-class standard for disclosure on water management, a material issue for the mining sector”.

She also confirmed that Polyus’ ‘2020 Water Report’, published in March, fully adhered to these new guidelines.

“Polyus is proud to work with the ICMM to encourage greater disclosure by the mining industry, which is necessary to accelerate a global transition to more sustainable mining practices.