Water
Access to water is critical to Rio Tinto's operations. We use water at every stage of our business - for exploration, mining, processing, smelting, refining, rehabilitation and drinking. We also use significant quantities of water to generate hydroelectric power.
Each of our operations has its own set of water challenges. Some are located in water-scarce environments where they compete with other users, while other operations need to manage surplus water from storms or groundwater. The quality of water is also a consideration, as it can affect production or increase operating costs. As a result, each of our operations implements our water strategy in its own way.
For our water strategy to succeed, we need good working relationships with those directly or indirectly affected by our businesses.
Indigenous and other land owners, potentially affected communities, governments, regulators, international, regional and local non government organisations, investors, the scientific and financial communities, and employees all have interests and concerns to which we must respond.
Engagement helps us understand issues and priorities and develop programmes and actions that deal with the things that matter to our stakeholders.
Increasingly, we are working in locations where access to clean drinking water and adequate sanitation is an issue for neighbouring communities, particularly in developing countries. Communities require an adequate supply of clean water. It is not a sustainable outcome if our operations have access to freshwater, but neighbouring community supplies are insufficient or contaminated.
Some examples of our work include:
- Our QMM mineral sands operation in Madagascar is a good example of working with the World Bank and the local water authority to provide a clean water supply to communities.
- An agreement was made with local Aboriginal people to conduct community monitoring of water quality at the Diavik diamond mine in the Northwest Territories of Canada.
As water is not an issue for Rio Tinto alone, it is important to work with other businesses, governments and other organisations on water related public policy issues.
In Australia, we are supporting the National Water Initiative that is reforming the way water is managed. We are collaborating with other mining companies and the Australian Government to provide information and work on research opportunities for industry water issues, for example:
- Rio Tinto chaired the water working group of the Minerals Council of Australia which worked with the University of Queensland's Sustainable Minerals Institute to develop industry wide water metrics for the Australian mining industry.
- Rio Tinto co-chaired a working group with the Australian Government in 2006 to develop a framework for strategic water management in the minerals industry (working group of the Ministerial Council on Mineral and Petroleum Resources, and the Minerals Council of Australia).
- Rio Tinto chaired a working group of government, industry, research and NGOs to produce a practical manual on water management in 2008 as part of the Australian Government's "Leading practice sustainable development program for the mining industry".
We also engage with other civil society organisations that have an objective of sustainable water management, for example:
- The World Economic Forum invited Rio Tinto to join its Project Board for a major water initiative from 2008 to 2010. Our participation at the forum is a unique opportunity to participate at a leadership level in the water debate and to learn from other leading companies about their successful approaches.
- Rio Tinto is participating in the Alliance for Water Stewardship meetings in 2010-11.
- Rio Tinto joined the Leadership Water Group of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.
- Ro Tinto participated in the 2010 Johnson Foundation Freshwater Forum in the US.
- Rio Tinto is currently in a partnership with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to explore the threats and opportunities arising from emerging green markets in biodiversity, carbon, water and other ecosystem services.
