ALUMBRERA

SUSTAINABILITY

Environmental Initiatives | Community Development

Environmental Initiatives

Alumbrera has been designed to meet environmental standards equivalent to those of the leading gold and copper producing countries.  The operation is committed to conducting business responsibly and in a manner designed to protect employees, the community’s health and the environment. The site’s Environmental Management System (EMS) based on ISO 14001 continues to be progressively revised and improved.

The operation of facilities are managed with consideration for reducing environmental impacts, efficient use of energy, water and other resources and minimizing waste generation and disposal.

Third party auditors are utilized to review key environment areas such as tailings storage facility design, construction and management. Through Xstrata and the other shareholders, MAL conducts regular audits of its environment programs to ensure that corporate, community and statutory standards have been adequately identified and are being adhered to.

A key requirement of the EMS is the ongoing development of comprehensive Compliance Registers for all sites.  Essentially, these registers constitute an internal auditing mechanism of the various sites’ compliance with environmental commitments.

Since commissioning, several environmental initiatives have been implemented to mitigate environmental risk. These include:

• Regular auditing by external parties of the tailing storage facility.
• In 2005 ISO 14001 accreditation was attained at the port, filter plant and concentrate pipeline facilities.
• Recycling of water (about 75%) in the tailing storage facility for use in the concentrator.
• Establishing a joint water monitoring program with representatives from the provincial government to monitor the area of influence of the minesite.
• Conducting research into the long term rehabilitation of waste materials.
• Making provisions for closure and rehabilitation in the life-of-mine plan and financial statements.

Environmental management at Alumbrera

Environment surrounding Alumbrera

Community Development

Alumbrera is an important business for Argentina and is a significant contributor to the Argentine economy. It was the country’s first major mining development and is now a source of ongoing direct and indirect economic benefits and opportunities for the Argentine people, especially for local communities close to the operations.

From the early stages of development, local communities were kept informed about the progress of the operation and future plans. Since commissioning, Alumbrera has brought considerable benefits to local communities through direct and indirect employment and the provision of local infrastructure.

The project has helped fund roads, including heavy vehicle by-passes around the towns of Santa Maria, Londres and Belen, so that the movement of trucks transporting supplies to the mine does not compromise people’s safety and quality of life. To encourage regional business development, the mine purchases supplies locally wherever possible.

Alumbrera recognizes its responsibility to the communities in which it operates and provides a range of support, including sponsorship and donations for local community initiatives with an emphasis on training, education and health.

Despite the best efforts to ensure minimal impacts and promote positive community initiatives, some tensions inevitably arise as a consequence of the development of a large scale mining industry in its infancy in Argentina. Consequently, Alumbrera works closely with government at the national, provincial and municipal levels to resolve common issues and alleviate community concerns.

Community training at Alumbrera

Community development at Alumbrera

 Alumbrera Sustainability Report 2005 (English)
 Alumbrera Sustainability Report 2005 (Spanish)