Capstone Copper Corp. (“Capstone” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce a new Sustainable Development Strategy (the “Strategy”) and the adoption of GHG emissions reduction targets to support the Company’s commitment to responsible copper production. The Strategy identifies five initial priorities with milestones, goals and targets for each. Click HERE to view a presentation of our Sustainable Development Strategy.
The Sustainable Development Strategy reflects the Company’s core values and commitment to responsible mining practices. A series of ongoing and future initiatives with specific goals, key performance indicators and targets will focus on five initial priority areas.
Targets against the 2021 baseline are as follows:
Climate – Reduce GHG emissions from fuel and power by 30% by 2030. We operate in countries that are signatories to the Paris Agreement and have committed to materially reduce national GHG emissions. We are developing and executing decarbonization strategies through several initiatives including adding more renewable power to our energy mix, studying independent renewable energy generation alternatives, and displacing diesel consumption.
Water – Reduce freshwater consumption intensity by 2030. Freshwater is an increasingly scarce resource essential to our operations and to society and communities. We aim to reduce freshwater intensity and increase low-quality, desalinated or recycled water as a proportion of total water consumed in our operations.
Tailings – Adopt the Global Industry Standard for Tailings Management (“GISTM”) by 2026. Responsible management of tailings is critical for minimizing negative environmental and social impacts. We aim to achieve independent assurance of all our tailings storage facilities in conformance with GISTM.
Biodiversity – Establish a Biodiversity Standard and Assess All Sites by 2025. Responsible mining practices are critical for minimizing disruption to the land and ensuring the preservation of ecosystems. We aim to assess all our sites against our framework for applying a mitigation hierarchy and prioritizing nature-related risks and opportunities, and to complete site-specific reclamation, reforestation, and habitat restoration projects.
Communities – Establish a Social Performance Standard and Assess All Sites by 2025. Fostering trust and constructive working relationships with local communities, organizations and governments is important to secure and maintain broad social acceptance. We are developing a Social Performance Standard to identify and manage social risks and impacts, stakeholder engagement, grievance management and community investment, informed by the following best practices: International Finance Corporation PS1, ICMM guidance, and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
Targets for each priority are supported by robust reporting and evaluation processes under the direction of senior leadership and the Board of Directors.
John MacKenzie, CEO of Capstone commented, “We are very proud to announce our new Sustainable Development Strategy today. Responsible operating practices are a vital component of our commitment to the environment, our employees, local communities and governments and must remain front of mind in everything we do. By setting priorities, milestones and interim targets, we recognize our role as producers of copper in the world’s efforts to address the causes of climate change. Our Board of Directors and management are committed to achieving our Strategy and goals to contribute to a net zero future.”
Wendy King, SVP ESG and General Counsel, commented, “This Sustainable Development Strategy and our GHG reduction targets follow a detailed review of our operations to establish a 2021 baseline. We are aligned with good international and industry standards while supporting the continued development of our assets. Several of our polices, standards and operational initiatives are already contributing to these targets and we look forward to providing regular updates as we progress.”