Introduction
The thursday, october 7, 2021 the Regional Event was held in a virtual way. Good business practices for climate action in the mining sectorthe first in a series of six virtual events on mining and climate change organized by the Raw Materials and Climate Project (MaPriC) with the support of the LEDS LAC platform. MaPriC is a project implemented by the German Development Cooperation (GIZ) together with the Colombian Ministry of Mines and Energy (Minenergia). The event was attended by 125 people who connected from countries such as Colombia, Peru, Chile, Mexico, Spain and the United States, among others.
Sergio Antonio Ruiz, MaPriC Project Coordinator and Diego Grajales, Climate Change Coordinator of Minenergia's Environmental and Social Affairs Office provided the opening remarks and context for the 6 Regional Events Series. In the first panel, a presentation was made on the MaPriC Project, which takes the World Bank's approach to climate-smart mining towards a modern and cleaner extraction of raw materials with less impact on the climate, the environment and society. Its objectives, the different lines of work, progress and results to date were presented. Eduardo José Sánchez, advisor to the MaPriC project (GIZ Colombia); Rodrigo Vásquez, advisor to the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Program of the MaPriC Project (GIZ Chile); and Andrés Felipe Robledo, technical advisor of GIZ Colombia. The second panel showed concrete cases from the private sector to understand what motivates them to implement climate action, what initiatives they promote and the results obtained. This panel was divided into two groups. Group 1 was formed by Sergio Escudero (Industrial Conconcreto, colombian stone aggregates companys); Javier Silva (SQMSociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile") and Carlos Forero (Chile's largest private mining company, "Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile") and Carlos Forero (ASOGRAVASASOGRAVAS, the Colombian stone aggregates association), and Group 2 was made up of consultant Johan Méndez (ArisolColombian aggregates company) and Magaly Chumpitaz (Pan American Silver(the world's leading silver mining company).
Key messages
General Context
The relationship between mining and climate change is becoming increasingly important. Recently, the International Council on Mining and MetalsThe Mining and Metals Association, made up of 28 mining companies and 35 associations, is committed to achieving a goal of zero net emissions by 2050 (or sooner). From another perspective, in its report "The Growing Role of Minerals and Metals for a Low Carbon Future"The World Bank notes that production of minerals such as graphite, lithium and cobalt will increase by almost 500% by 2050 to meet the growing demand for clean energy technologies.
In this context, it is necessary for the mining industry to seek to increase the sustainability of its processes and its demand for raw materials, invest in new technologies, be more energy efficient and develop good practices in terms of environmental management and sustainability. Government entities, in their enabling role, should provide pathways or opportunities for industries to identify their best options for achieving carbon neutrality. This increases the opportunities for the mining industry to act and intervene as a climate-smart ally. It is important to emphasize that companies must have the necessary attitude and take ownership of the processes and roadmaps. It will be of no use for governments to set the conditions if companies do not act.
First panel: Raw Materials and Climate
The MaPriC project was born thanks to the dialogue with the German cooperation (GIZ) to propose from the mining sector, not only public policies but also to implement projects related to climate change. Its objective is to develop and complement strategies that increase efficiency in the use of resources and in the reduction of greenhouse gases (GHG). Its fields of action are: (i) Public policies on climate change; (ii) Business sector; (iii) Efficiency measures; and (iv) Capacity building.
To date, from MaPriC Colombia, interesting results have been obtained in terms of policy formulation and collaborative work with companies in the mining sector of stone aggregates and construction materials. On the other hand, from MaPriC Chile, the focus is on energy and operational efficiency and innovation. Energy efficiency is possible in small, medium and large-scale mining, and energy efficiency practices can be implemented in the extraction, crushing and logistics process, in addition to introducing an energy management system.
Second panel: Business Experiences
ConconcretoIn response to the need to become a company that participates in climate action, the company was able to identify opportunities to take the first step. Not only did they work on a cultural change with their employees, but they also developed an Efficient Use of Resources Plan. In the medium term, they identified that if they could become more efficient and sustainable, productivity would improve; and if they reduced fuel consumption, they would save production costs. They also identified inefficiencies in their processes, extra use of materials and necessary technological replacements, which did not imply great costs, but great benefits. Thus, it was established that sustainability and innovation are the pillars to guide their performance.
For SQM It was a great challenge to address the issue of climate change at the beginning. However, its slogan today is "Let's build the future today" as it concentrates its efforts to be a leading company in the production of lithium in Chile. In this line, they have a Sustainable Development Plan to produce more, emitting less and with less demand for raw materials. Its goal is to be carbon neutral by 2030. They also aim to reduce by 50% both brine extraction, necessary for lithium mining, and water consumption. Finally, they maintain that it is important to have an entity to validate these commitments and results.
ASOGRAVASthe Colombian association of stone aggregates producers, points out that, given the imminent impacts of climate change, a company has to do good business, be more efficient, more productive and competitive. To this end, having an energy management system, reviewing its own processes, measuring consumption and emissions, as well as communicating in a transparent manner, is key. For this, the support and work of international cooperation with companies is vital.
ArisolDespite being a small company, it has managed to apply ISO 50,001 (energy efficiency) and the Colombian Ministry of Mines and Energy's Climate Change Business Guide. These tools have enabled the company to analyze risks, identify its carbon footprint, estimate its offsets, and identify voluntary actions free of charge. In addition, it has been important for Arisol to identify and review best practices, rather than creating new processes or existing measures.
For Pan American Silver (PAS), The implementation of a management system designed by its parent company in Canada has led it to organize its environmental management and identify best practices in the energy sector. An Energy Committee was created for each mining unit to identify the main sources of energy consumption and how they could be addressed with a view to reducing GHGs. A lesson learned from the outset was to analyze operations jointly and conduct a risk and climate change analysis to improve the company's management. Good practices implemented include changing certain equipment, lighting and pumps, identifying leaks and improving the use of networks.
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