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Materials and waste management

As global populations grow and industrialise, effective materials management becomes increasingly important for people, the environment, and nature. We produce materials that are essential to modern life and economic prosperity, while striving to manage waste responsibly throughout the lifecycle of our operations. We seek to improve how we manage materials by re-using or designing out waste where possible, keeping resources in use longer, and safely and responsibly disposing of waste.

Our Environment standard includes our position and commitment to responsible waste management and materials stewardship. The standard covers how we import, store, use and ultimately dispose of hydrocarbons, reagents, process fluids, non-mineral wastes and other materials that could pose environmental risks because of their physical and chemical properties. It also covers management of reactive mineral waste, including geochemical impacts caused by rock that is removed or exposed through open pit and underground mining.

Managing materials and waste risks

We have developed a framework that provides a consistent approach to identify, assess, manage and communicate materials and waste-related risk across our portfolio. It builds on our Environment Standard and includes a library of controls. This risk framework informs our assets’ approach to operational risk management. It covers 3 categories:

  • Management of hazardous materials and non-mineral waste (issues relating to how we use, store, manage or dispose of hazardous materials and/ or non-mineral waste)  
    “Have we applied the waste mitigation hierarchy to prevent, reuse, recycle, recover and dispose of our wastes in a manner that maximises resource efficiency and minimises impact to the environment?” 
  • Contamination from hazardous materials, non-mineral or chemically reactive mineral waste (issues relating to the presence of contamination resulting from material storage and/or disposal) 
    “Do we understand the extent and exposure pathways for the hazardous material(s) present in an area of contamination and do we have a management or remediation plan to address the risks?”  
  • Chemically reactive mineral waste management (issues relating to how we characterise, use, store, manage or dispose chemically reactive minerals)   
    “Is there a possibility for chemically reactive minerals to cause pollution or harm to the environment? Do we have adequate controls and plans to manage this material?” 

We use the framework to survey risk across our portfolio. We also collect annual and cumulative metrics from each asset on reuse, recycling, reduction, storage and disposal (on and off-site) for mineral, non-mineral and hazardous materials. We report on this annually – view the Sustainability Fact Book for more detailed information.

Our standard and controls guide how we manage mineral and non-mineral materials and wastes, including their characterisation, design and planning, integrated management, monitoring and disposal. Materials and waste management is connected to other areas of our business. We align and integrate our approach with how we manage water and tailings, communities and social performance, procurement and closure. 

The mitigation hierarchy in action

We look for opportunities to reuse waste where it is safe to do so. For example, inert mineral materials may be re-purposed on site for construction, backfill or rehabilitation, reducing the need for new or additional quarry materials. Non-mineral waste can also be diverted from landfills and recycled into useable products. For example, at our Oyu Tolgoi mine in Mongolia, non-mineral wastes have been successfully recycled into products like soap and plastic pellets. 

We collaborate across the value chain to identify or create circular opportunities for repurposed products. For example, Boyne Smelters in Queensland contributes to a closed-loop recycling initiative turning aluminium scrap into a saleable product. At our operations in Argyle, Yarwun, Weipa and Boyne we recycle end-of-life tyres and conveyor belts into rubber crumb that can be used in road construction and rubber matting. Hazardous materials, such as oils, fuels, solvents, paints and batteries, are handled under strict standards and regulations to prevent mishandling or contamination.  

Our operations also produce mineral byproducts such as waste rock and tailings that require responsible management. We aim to maximise resource efficiency by reducing waste and recovering valuable materials. At Kennecott in the US, we recover 9 different metals from our processing circuit, including tellurium, which is used in solar cells, and sulfuric acid, which is used to produce fertiliser. Mineral waste materials that cannot be used elsewhere are characterised and deposited into designed and engineered landforms. Chemically reactive minerals are managed in line with our standard and applicable local regulations to maintain geochemical stability of the final deposited material. 

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Our performance

Visit the Sustainability Fact Book for detailed information about our materials and waste management performance.

View our materials and waste management performance

Materials and waste management stories

Bauxite, Gove Operations

Nose to tail mining

Making the most of what we take from the ground
Dave and solar panels, Kennecott operations

Turning slime into solar panels

Our Kennecott copper mine is extracting a rare, valuable metal from waste
ReMade uniforms

Mining PPE’s second life

The ReMade initiative is reducing clothing waste by turning PPE into new products – before it can reach landfill

Respecting rights

The materials and wastes we produce have the potential to cause harm or pollution, and can impact people’s rights or access to impacted natural resources. We are committed to managing materials and waste responsibly and respectfully through meaningful stakeholder engagement.
Driftwood branches scattered along the edge of a calm tidal inlet at dusk, with still water reflecting soft pink and purple tones from the sunset sky and a dark shoreline in the distance.
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Examples: 

  • At Diavik in Canada’s Northwest Territories, Indigenous communities have helped inform how we manage the site through operations and into closure. A Traditional Knowledge Panel of Elders and youth provides guidance on closure planning and monitoring for rehabilitation of rock piles and reconnecting the mine pits with Lac de Gras. In 2026, we also signed a Closure Agreement with the Tłı̨chǫ Government, continuing their involvement as the mine moves through closure. 
  • At Gove in the Northern Territory, Australia, we work closely with Traditional Owners as we plan for closure and manage the land and materials left behind. Regular engagement, site visits and planning discussions help us understand Traditional Owner priorities and expectations and incorporate these into rehabilitation and closure planning. 
  • At the former Holden Mine in the United States, we worked with Indigenous communities, local communities and regulators to manage historical mine waste and contaminated groundwater. This engagement helped inform remediation of the site, where around 8 million tonnes of tailings and waste rock were reshaped and covered and contaminated groundwater is now collected and treated. 
  • At Winu in Western Australia, we’re working with Nyangumarta Traditional Owners to understand and discuss how the proposed mine could change the landscape. Interactive 3D models developed with Charles Darwin University help us explore future landforms and issues such as water and waste together, making complex plans easier to understand and creating space for Traditional Owner knowledge and perspectives to inform planning.
Aerial view of a haul truck transporting crushed rock through a quarry or mining site, surrounded by stockpiles of excavated material and earthworks.

Partnership

Our strategic waste partnerships are fundamental to the effective management of waste in and around our operations. We partner with governments, communities and organisations to grow our understanding of opportunities for better materials stewardship and circularity, as well as improvements in waste disposal.
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Examples: 

  • At Diavik in Canada and Oyu Tolgoi in Mongolia, our ReMade initiative works with local and Indigenous communities to find new uses for workwear that would otherwise become waste. Used PPE is being repurposed by Indigenous artisans in Canada and, in Mongolia, adapted with local herder communities to help protect young livestock during extreme winters. 
  • Across our operations, we’re also working with local partners to find practical ways to keep materials out of landfill. This includes refurbishing workwear for herder communities near our lithium operations in Argentina and recycling end-of-life tyres and conveyor belts from several of our Australian operations for use in road construction.

Innovation

We are focussed on finding innovative ways to manage waste more efficiently and effectively. One of the ways we do this is by finding a new use for operational wastes and by-products.

By extracting valuable minerals from waste – or creating new products from the waste itself – we can reduce materials sent to landfill, make useful products, create new revenue streams and help our customers meet their sustainability goals.  

Close shot of scattered aluminium blocks
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Here are 5 useful materials we’re extracting from waste:

  • Scandium
  • Tellurium
  • Alextra
  • Monzanite
  • Pozzolans
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Transparency

As a global commodities producer, we have an important responsibility to supply the materials the world needs in a sustainable way.

Our START program shows where and how our refined aluminium and copper products are produced, providing greater visibility on key environment, social and governance (ESG) metrics for customers and supply chain partners. The START label provides transparent, traceable data about our materials, with the metrics being based on primary data from our operations and supplemented by secondary data from industry databases, as required. 

 

Read more about our START program View our Sustainability Fact Book

  • Definitions

    Circularity: An economic model that keeps materials and products in use for as long as possible and designs out waste. 

    Product stewardship: A lifecycle‑based approach where all parties share responsibility for minimising a product’s ESG impacts.