Those with axes to grind have been out there for some months trying, but mostly failing, to make their political points criticising the environmental record of the provider of the metal which goes into the minting of the Olympic gold, silver and bronze medals. Virtually all of this metal is being donated by Kennecott, the Rio Tinto subsidiary which operates the huge Bingham Canyon mining complex outside Salt Lake City in Utah. A small percentage of the metals (about 1%) has been sourced from development ore from Oyu Tolgoi.
London and Melbourne headquartered Rio Tinto, despite being one of the most environmentally aware and compliant of all the global miners, is no stranger to environmental pressure groups criticising its record -- a burden every mining company out there has to bear to some extent or another. Mining tends to be an easy target -- in part because metals and minerals are often found in virgin territory which the environmentalists feel they have the god-given right to protect from the depredations of the miners at all costs, and by all means possible -- usually involving scare tactics and huge ‘economies with the truth’ about the likelihood of pollution, health hazards etc. for which there are seldom any realistic grounds. True the mining industry of a century ago did ride roughshod over environmental concerns such as they were, but that was in a different age and today’s mining companies are ultra-conscious of protecting their environmental legacy -- and in cases where they take on old mining areas, or artisanal mining areas, they will leave them in a far better state than before when they eventually move out. Such is progress.
Returning to the Olympic medals, Rio Tinto as a major sponsor of the event has donated the metals for them, worth some $7 million, gratis -- and the reward is more environmental and social bullying by NGOs and their like. Anywhere where they think publicity may be gained from throwing stones at major companies seems to be fair game. The latest example is the U.S. AFL-CIO’s demand that Rio Tinto be barred from Olympic sponsorship due to the company being, as the labour federation describes it, “a union-busting global mining conglomerate with a track record of worker and environmental abuse”. This relates almost in its entirety to a single dispute by Rio Tinto subsidiary Alcan with a Canadian union -- with the totally unspecified, unassociated and probably unwarranted environmental abuse accusation thrown in for good measure!
In a statement in April, Rio’s CEO Tom Albanese had this to say relating to the compan’s environmental principles and the Olympic medals: “Being ethically responsible is a thread that runs through everything we do. We aim to bring long-lasting positive change to the communities where we work, respecting human rights, bringing economic benefits and looking after the environment.The metals and minerals we produce go to make things we use every day, and that help contribute to higher living standards… We have rigorous standards for air quality, ecosystems, biodiversity, climate change, the use of energy, land and water and waste disposal. Before we even open a mine we plan for its closure and how to restore the land. We support London 2012’s commitment to delivering the most sustainable games ever. It aligns with Rio Tinto’s commitment to sustainable development wherever we operate.”
This really says it all. Today’s mining companies don’t just pay lip service to environmental and social concerns, they take them into account in every facet of planning, operating and closing a modern-day mining operation.For the Olympic medals, Kennecott reportedly refined around 1,400 ounces of gold, six tonnes of silver and 2-3 tonnes of copper. Other metals to make up the alloy for the bronze medals will have come from operation in Australia and the UK. The medals have been minted by the U.K’s Royal Mint
(Abridged from an article by Lawrence Williams in Mineweb.)