The Third Bauxite Mine Rehabilitation Study has now been published. A summary of the report can be found below.

In 1991 and 1998, the International Aluminium Institute (IAI) commissioned surveys regarding bauxite mine rehabilitation programmes that had been undertaken by operations around the world. The aim in both cases was to provide data on the environmental impacts of bauxite mines and their rehabilitation programmes. In 2003, a third survey was carried out to follow up and extend the first two. Twenty-three operations, which mine 70% of the world’s total production of bauxite, responded to the 2003 survey comprised of 2002 data. This compares to 65% in 1991 and 72% in 1998. While percentage coverage of world production was down, operations in only 8 countries were covered by the 1998 survey compared to 12 countries (including Russia) in 2002. In all but two countries (where specific company issues affected data reporting), the number of operations reporting remained equal or increased between the two surveys. Three mine sites (operated by a single company) in one country, which reported separately in the 1998 survey, reported combined data for 2002

The survey shows that bauxite miners are making substantial efforts towards the sustainable development of the industry. While the total annual area mined by reporting operations has grown by 25% since 1998, the area rehabilitated per year has increased by 32.5%. Operations, representing 97.2% of the total reported bauxite, have formal, written rehabilitation procedures compared with operations mining 88% of the reported bauxite in 1998 and 82% in 1991. Bauxite mining operations are continually striving to improve their environmental performance through formal frameworks (12 mines, representing 69% of reported production, have ISO 14001 certification) by employing specialist staff and by supporting environmental research and development projects. Operations are conserving and in many areas improving the natural capital of the areas in which they mine through the identification of possible environmental impacts and by taking appropriate actions to monitor and minimise these impacts. For instance, 19 operations, representing 95% of reported bauxite production, monitor the quality of surface water leaving the mines, compared to 85% in 1998. Typically the minimisation of environmental impacts is achieved by setting environmental standards, often reinforced by legislation, and by developing environmental planning, training, management, monitoring and rehabilitation processes that enable the standards to be met. The success of various operations in developing innovative environmental management and rehabilitation techniques is shown by the number of awards these environmental programmes have amassed.

Bauxite miners are engaging with local communities and endeavouring to ensure that the benefits of mining are shared with present and future generations. Good environmental management and rehabilitation, which ensures that all potential land-use options are conserved, is one way in which the industry is meeting its responsibility to the wider, global community. Other ways in which the industry supports the maintenance and development of local communities are by:

• Providing well-paid employment under conditions that comply with accepted labour standards;
• Providing training opportunities;
• Supporting local businesses;
• Supporting community initiatives;
• Supporting various social programmes;
• Building infrastructure that will benefit the communities into the future;
• Providing compensation for those people who are disadvantaged or displaced by mining.

The amounts that the respondents spend on community projects annually are substantially more than those reported in the 1998 survey ¯ US$904,000 for operations with a company town and US$130,000 for those without, compared to a mean figure of US$75,000 in 1998. Formal links between the community and the miners are a feature of most operations. These links empower communities by providing a forum through which they can have input to, and be kept informed of, significant decisions that may affect them. Most operations (19 mines, representing 86% of reported production) also have formal procedures through which community complaints can be addressed.

Industry groups will continue to promote the principle that all operators should adopt the existing best environmental practices of the industry. In addition, all operators will be encouraged to make further improvements in their environmental management and rehabilitation procedures and to continue to ensure that the benefits of mining are shared with existing and future populations in the communities in which they operate. Future surveys will show how successful industry groups have been at promoting the concepts of sustainable development and continuous improvement throughout the industry.

In order to give further encouragement to the process of continuous improvement, the IAI has established a Bauxite Mining and Alumina Refining Task Force to spread good practice throughout the global industry. The IAI will also be monitoring performance in accordance with certain key indicators on a regular annual basis in addition to this periodic survey every four years.