Major global copper miner BHP has committed to the Copper Mark Responsible Production Framework covering areas like the environment, community, human rights and governance.
In a media statement BHP said it has submitted its Letter of Commitment to the Copper Mark to cover the company’s copper assets in Escondida and Spence in Chile, and Olympic Dam, Australia—representing 1.5M tonnes of copper production in FY20.
The Copper Mark is a voluntary program designed to hold the copper industry accountable for responsible production and supports the United Nations sustainable development goals.
“We know that our long-term sustainability credentials are important to our customers and increasingly important to end consumers of copper products, such as buyers of electric vehicles and copper intensive consumer durables,” BHP Group Sales and Marketing Officer, Michiel Hovers, said.
“We have set targets to reduce our emissions by 30% by 2030 and have a goal of net zero emissions by 2050. In Chile, at our largest copper mine, we are aiming to achieve 100 per cent renewable power and 100% desalinated water.”
“We know that copper is essential to the energy transition, but equally important to our customers, our investors, our employees, our communities, and our stakeholders across the copper value chain is ethical and sustainable production of copper – where production is in line with the UN’s sustainable development goals.”
The Copper Mark was created by the International Copper Association as an industry-wide approach to transparency and standards for the copper value chain. In 2019 it was established as an independent entity.
BHP Media Release: https://www.bhp.com/media-and-insights/news-releases/2020/11/bhp-commits-to-copper-mark/
Copper Mark: https://coppermark.org