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By A Kamaraj, M Mohanasundaram, R Kumar, P Tikare

This study presents a comprehensive thermodynamic optimisation and sustainability analysis of the secondary copper smelting process for Waste Printed Circuit Board (WPCB) recycling. The study investigates various scenarios with different proportions of WPCB in the input stream, ranging from 0 per cent to 100 per cent. Through thermodynamic modelling using FactSage™ version 8.1, the optimisation process is conducted in three stages. The results of the thermodynamic modelling indicate that the best-case scenario for WPCB recycling is achieved with a 40 per cent proportion of WPCB in the input stream. This case exhibits a maximum copper recovery of 99.93 per cent while minimising the formation of other waste. In addition to the thermodynamic analyses, environmental factors such as the carbon emission index and resource utilisation efficiency are studied. The 40 per cent WPCB recycling case exhibits a resource utilisation efficiency of 93.055 per cent and a carbon emission rate of 0.133. The present investigation highlights the significant benefits of a 40 per cent WPCB recycling scenario through a secondary copper smelting process in terms of base metal recovery and energy efficiency, thus emphasising its potential for sustainable PCB waste management and resource utilisation.

Aug 21, 2024

By Hori M, Komatsu T

In Japan, a small-diameter tunnel boring machine (TBM) of diameter 2.6 m applicable to a wide range of geology from hard rock to soft strata was developed with the purpose of reducing construction costs of headrace tunnels for small hydroelectric power stations. And in 1983, a demonstration test was carried out in the No. 1 headrace tunnel work of Hayakido Hydroelectric Power Station. The principal achievements in executing work are the following: (1) Although this TBM was a demonstration test unit, excavation advances averaged more than 200 m/month and exceeded the average 150 m/month with a conventional method. (2) According to PS velocity surveys after tunnel excavation the zone of loosening due to the TBM method was small enough to be ignored and was approximately one-half compared with conventional methods in rock of the same evaluation.

Jan 1, 1987

By R Riquelme

The El Salvador porphyry Cu deposit (26¦ 15Æ Lat S, ~2700 masl) and associated exotic mineralisation is situated at the back-scarp of the late middle Miocene Atacama pediplain in the western Precordillera. New, together with published 40Ar-39Ar data from El Salvador combined with morphologic analysis reveal that the palaeospring plumbing system related to exotic mineralisation at the Damiana exotic Cu deposit and the local geomorphology has not changed fundamentally between the late Eocene and late Miocene. Stable H/D isotope data on supergene alunite from El Salvador indicate an overall increase in dD values (VSMOW) from -74ë at 35.82 ¦ 0.95 Ma to -23ë at ~11 Ma. The transition from strongly to moderately negative deuterium values occurred between ~16 and ~13.5 Ma. Supergene alunite from the El Hueso (3950 masl) sedimentary rock-hosted epithermal deposit ca 35 km SE from El Salvador was dated at 8.19 ¦ 0.01 Ma and yielded a dD value of -25ë. We interpret the increasing deuterium excess as the result of strong evaporation and recycling of meteoric water after ~15 Ma and as indicative for a change in precipitation patterns and climate desiccation. In contrast, the strongly negative dD value for late Eocene supergene alunite points to a more humid climate and an elevation similar to the present. The late Miocene supergene activity at El Hueso is probably related to an uplift of the Precordillera to elevations sufficient for capture of orographically controlled precipitation. An EXTENDED ABSTRACT is available for download. A full-length paper was not prepared for this presentation.

Jan 1, 2008

A combination of the needs of business, employee desires and safety and health considerations is stimulating increasing attention to the time spent by people at work and the timing of that work. Particularly we are seeing: - innovative work schedules for 24-hour mining businesses; and - response from industry to accommodate the needs, even the desires, of employees in return for systems which are more productive and more capital efficient. There appears to be an evolutionary trend for business management to become more sophisticated and responsive to the need for achieving close to best cost work schedules to sustain continuous improvement. The underlying motivating forces driving this trend for improved techniques in organising attendance at, and time spent at work, is the seemingly inseparable combination of technological advance and ever-increasing accumulation of capital. The mining industry has not remained untouched by this thrust for ever-increasing need for best use of labour, to adopt advances in technology and to provide attractive opportunities for putting accumulated capital to work. An essential component of this on-going thrust is a substantial effort by the mining industry to improve the performance of labour by providing most-productive work schedules.

Jan 1, 1996

By J Rutter, E Amini, D La Rosa, N Beaton, M Scott, F Faramarz, L Keeney

Anglo American’s Los Bronces copper mine in Chile has been conducting detailed assessments investigating value adding options for their asset. The mine has conducted several detailed Mine-to- Mill and Grade Engineering studies to investigate increased throughput and head grade and to quantifying the impact of these approaches across the life of mine. CRC ORE has two key technologies namely Grade Engineering and the Integrated Extraction Simulator. These two technology suites have been combined to understand the technological landscape and associated value drivers suitable for application at Los Bronces. Detailed ore characterisation test work was conducted to:  measure and spatially model the propensity of ores to naturally deport and  develop customised blast models for Mine-to-Mill and Grade Engineering evaluation The outputs of this work were utilised to develop a block model populated with a range on new Grade Engineering and blasting parameters suitable for scenario analysis. To facilitate scenario analysis a high-fidelity value chain model of the Los Bronces operation from blasting to concentrate production was built in IES. IES was combined with sophisticated analytical tools such as Neural Networks to develop and reconcile a fully integrated value chain. The value chain model made it possible to simulate in IES all available blocks in the block model to predict throughput and grade changes for different strategic scenarios. The scenario analysis was run across 24 strategic combinations of Mine-to-Mill and Grade Engineering and comprised several million simulations. The scenarios investigated each technology independently and jointly to provide an attributed block model that can feed forward into technoeconomic modelling to determine optimal execution strategies for the mine. This paper presents the first published study combining Grade Engineering and IES to provide mass simulation capability to investigate strategic options for a mining asset.

Nov 10, 2020

By J P. Sykes, T C. McCuaig, M Jessell, A Trench

The election of Donald Trump and the Brexit referendum herald a shift towards a tighter definition of economic value, at the expense of the broader value concept of sustainable development; as well as a rise of protectionism, reversing a long-term trend of globalisation. However, the situation is complex, especially over the longer term in which mine project development and exploration operates. The minerals sector should proceed with caution. A greater focus on the local impacts of mining may be strategically beneficial, not only to mitigate against a potential protectionist future, but also because sustainable development has become more ‘localist’ via the concept of ‘social licence to operate’, whilst globalisation also seems to provoke increased ‘localist’ sentiments (known as ‘glocalism’). Localist strategies, therefore, seem a good hedge against multiple political futures. By contrast, moving away from sustainable development appears strategically riskier. Not only are ‘unsustainable’ activities, such as pollution and civil rights infringements harder to reverse, but a movement towards a more sustainable global economy may already be predetermined, even if the journey there may seem oblique. It appears that the increased economic development that is coveted globally is intrinsically linked to a rise in environmental and social consciousness.CITATION:Sykes, J P, Trench, A, McCuaig, T C and Jessell, M, 2017. Charles Dickens on the (potentially) changing role of globalisation and sustainability in the long-term future of mining and exploration, in Proceedings Tenth International Mining Geology Conference 2017, pp 239–256 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 20, 2017

By S M. Stewart

Building and Maintaining Community Relationships   In mining terms, the town of Waihi is distinctive with the Martha mine situated right in the heart of the town. MarthaÆs central location and other mining activity nearby means there is an increased community focus on the happenings at the mine and the effects and impacts of mining. While WaihiÆs proximity to the mine is unique, all mines have a community context that they operate within.   Issues of proximity simply heighten awareness and emphasise the need for building and maintaining good community relationships. In the three years we have been working alongside the Waihi community, we have worked together with concerned and supportive residents, representatives of Newmont Waihi Gold and representatives of Hauraki District Council, to develop a collaborative framework for addressing the economic, social, environmental, cultural and spiritual wellbeing of the people of Waihi. This could not have occurred without the genuine commitment of all participants.   This collaborative focus has resulted in some tangible progress in Waihi which, in part, stems from people taking an interest in the town because the town is taking an interest in itself. As we have worked and learned within the process of building and maintaining a collaborative and sustainable community environment, we have tried to adhere to a philosophy and a set of basic principles. We believe that this approach, combined with a teachable skill set, helped to create the opportunity to develop a truly collaborative community environment which continues to grow. Our paper will describe this philosophy, these principles and the skill set that we have applied.   The application of the process in Waihi has resulted in a series of outcomes unique to Waihi. These outcomes include formation of the Waihi Community Vision committee, the Vision Waihi Trust and the subgroups set up to further the interests of particular groups, for the collective benefit of all the community.   Based on our experience of other situations, and on the way the Waihi process has developed, we believe that the identified principles and skills can be transported and used in other cultures and contexts. While the resultant outcomes may differ, the underlying principles will still apply. Progress will come from creating a sustainable environment within which the community (including residents, industry and regulatory authority) can determine its own internal relationships and the vibrant growing sense it has of itself.

Jan 1, 2006

By J M. Marwan, B Tang

Strain-type rockbursts, or strainbursts, are characterised by a localised violent failure. Their cause is attributed primarily to the sudden release of strain energy, which accumulates in a volume of highly stressed rock as a result of mining activities. Examples of such phenomena are crown/sill pillar bursts created in the mining process, pillar crush in room-and-pillar mining, face ejection in drift development headings at depth, and floor bursts associated with deep shaft sinking. The paper describes a simple method for the assessment of crown pillar bursts in steeply dipping ore deposits which are extracted by the overhand cut-and-fill method. The method is based on a theory previously established by the author to help assess the need for a remedial solution such as pillar destress blasting. Basically, the mining-induced energy storage rate (ESR) in the pillar is compared with the critical strain energy to come up with the so-called burst potential index (BPI).

Jan 1, 2001

Laboratory scale flotation tests were done on mineral hematite and aspecular hematite ore using oleic acid and sodium oleate as collectors. The mineral hematite floated strongly in the neutral pH region, with an increased pH range of flotation at higher oleate additions. Concentrates with sufficient hematite grade to meet the paint pigment specification were produced using oleic acid and sodium oleate as hematite collectors on the specular hematite ore. Hematite recoveries of 70 per cent at 60 per cent Fe grade were obtained using stagewise roughing. The interaction between hematite and oleate was confirmed as chemisorption but the exact mechanism could not be determined, as two independent phenomena can be used to explain the fact that the pH of maximum grade increased with increasing oleate addition.

Jan 1, 1999

By Fradd WP

South Australia pioneered metal mining in Australia and was the main source of copper for several decades. Gold discoveries and mining also contributed significantly to the development of the Colony. Across the State can be seen the holes, the mullock heaps and, in some instances, the remnants of machinery of the past era. In this, the centenary year of the discovery of the Teetulpa goldfield, considered by some to he the most significant discovery of gold in the State, it is appropriate that we should present a paper on the history of gold mining in South Australia. South Australia has not been a major producer of gold with recorded production a little in excess of 15 million grams (15 t). This represents about 0.25 per cent of the Australian total and ranks last of the States of the Commonwealth. The outstand- ing feature of gold production in South Australia has been the succession of short periods of rela- tively high production immediately following a discovery, with payable dirt being quickly exhausted, a fact clearly illustrated by the graph of South Australian gold production (Figure 1).

Jan 1, 1987

Large mining operations need equipment that consistently performs as expected. The most effective way of ensuring this is to have a defined life cycle with an optimised maintenance strategy. The determination of this life cycle is an economic decision, influenced by the construction and utilisation of the equipment. An effective life cycle costing (LCC) tool must be able to process the many variable factors involved.Many factors influence the costs that are associated with a machine over its life. The most variable of these are the costs of maintaining the equipment. Maintenance costs are dependant not only on the utilisation of the machine, but also on the strategy that has been developed to support the machine through its life. A combination of supplier support, component changes, regular servicing and unscheduled maintenance needs to be modelled, based on a variety of drivers. Traditionally spreadsheets have been used to model these factors, but the increasing complexity of the situation can make spreadsheets unwieldy and difficult to manage. A database solution that breaks each activity into its constituent components, links them to an associated mine plan driver and then aggregates the result is the ideal tool to provide a time based cost profile. The evaluation of a number of scenarios, representing different maintenance strategies/life cycles can be rapidly undertaken. Auditability through inbuilt tools is required to provide easy tracing of data. Use of the host company's account structure allows for reporting against the standard chart of accounts.

Dec 6, 2010

We are moving into an era where we experience the consequences of the skills crisis û namely many resource models have been generated by inexperienced people under pressure to deliver high quality resource estimates in unsupported environments, often without technical mentors. These resource models form the basis of our decision to pursue actual mining. This begs the question: how valid are the resource models that form the basis of our mining decisions? This paper presents various model validation tools such as comparison of input and output statistics, swath plots, sectional or bench comparisons between drill holes and models as well as a variety of other approaches. Each model validation tool currently used in industry is examined:how the tool generates results,what assumptions exist,what constitutes a pass/fail in the test, and what interpretations to consider when using the validation tool. Each validation toolÆs suitability and the inherent flaws in the underlying assumptions are also discussed. These are supported with examples of good versus bad validations. Our principles based reporting codes provide flexibility in how models are generated and what approaches and/or parameters are used to generate resource estimates. This flexibility works well when used by experienced practitioners. However, our reporting codes assume a level of experience not always available in the current skills crisis. This paper seeks to provide minimum model validation prerequisites for model acceptance and suitability, regardless of the resource analystÆs experience. As we move forward, our immediate challenge is to ensure our baseline resource models are material, transparent and competent.

Jan 1, 2009

Carbon sequestration in planted forests provides an immediately available, low cost option to address the greenhouse impacts of coal mining and coal utilisation in a carbon constrained world. In addition, planted forests also offer the opportunity to address other environmental issues, particularly salinity and loss of biodiversity. Given salinity is characteristically associated with agriculture in the 500 to 700 mm rainfall belt, then where such forests can also produce commercial timber products, they offer the additional opportunity to establish new, diversified rural employment in both timber growing and processing. In the majority of Australian catchments affected by salinity, where rainfall is generally less than the 700 mm limit to conventional forestry, and where groundwater reserves are often saline, the objective of achieving economically viable forestry production presents a significant challenge. In 1996, Saltgrow commenced a collaborative breeding program to combine the salt and stress tolerance of E camaldulensis, with the growth rate, stem form and wood properties of the commercial species, E grandis and E globules. This program aimed to produce trees with the potential for commercial rehabilitation of saline landscapes. Results covering a range of site conditions from SaltgrowÆs network of over 100 trials around Australia are presented. The opportunity for commercial plantations integrated with agriculture in low to medium rainfall areas to address salinity and sustainability will be discussed. In addition, the significant potential for partnerships between land-rich, cash-poor farmers, catchment management authorities seeking to invest in public good projects that enhance environmental sustainability, and major carbon producing industries with either mandated or voluntary requirements to curtail net emissions will also be discussed.

Jan 1, 2005

By Ramsden AR, French DH

The limited contrast range of conventional black and white imaging does not enable full use to be made of the dynamic range of the video signal obtained from a scanning electron microscope or microprobe. The use of false colour substantially increases the information that can be derived from such images enabling relationships to be displayed that cannot be observed in black and white. This capability is now used extensively in combination with quantitative electron microprobe analysis as a research tool for ore characterization and host rocks studies related to minerals exploration in the CSIRO Division of Exploration Geoscience.

Jan 1, 1989

The energy supply in the 21st century is still secured by coal. According to estimates of the International Energy Agency (IEA), coal will have the same importance as oil for the world-wide supply of energy until 2030. Coal is also an important element of EU policy, its future use is closely linked to effectively addressing the environmental challenges it poses. Hard and brown coal represent approximately 80 per cent of European Union (EU) reserves of fossil fuels and coal utilisation can co-exist with the development of power generation based on renewables. Europe is the world's third largest consumer of coal behind China and the United States.The Czech Republic is poor in energy resources except for coal. Brown coal is relatively abundant (mineable reserves estimated at 1800 Mt, output 48 Mt/a) and significant quantities of hard coal (mineable reserves 900 Mt, 13 Mt/a), much of it suitable for coke production, are also present.Severoceske Doly (SD Company), the biggest Czech coal mining company (22 Mt/a, 48.6 per cent Czech market share) and one of the biggest in Europe, reinforces despite the last deep crisis in the Czech and European economies its long-standing stable and strong market and financial position. From 2009, the SD Company co-owns, with partners, a brown-coal mining company MIBRAG (21 Mt/a). SD Company invests in large mining equipment (eg new giant spreaders and bucket-wheel excavators, extension of overland belt conveyors), rebuilds and upgrades mining and processing installations, auxiliary and other machinery. We should see the investment we make today in tomorrow's mining and reclamation as an opportunity and not as a burden. They enable to make our position more resistant in the longer term. Projects focused on the environment and operational safety went hand in hand with these efforts.R&D activities relate to technical innovations, improvements of mining equipment, research and evaluation of conditions for extracting coal seam and/or overburden and mitigation of environmental impacts, utilisation of coal in new products. The company spends considerable amounts on reclaiming affected land and creating a new post-mining landscape.Our dialogue with influential stakeholders in the region where we operate contributes to the long-term improvement in the quality of life of local residents. Such dialogue with communities in the last ten years has been instrumental for confidence building. SD Company helps to develop many projects of towns and villages in its vicinity. The stable and transparent relations with our neighbours are in accordance with our basic principles of corporate social responsibility.

Dec 6, 2010

By P J. Cullen, B P. Banerjee, S Raval

Continuous monitoring of mining impacts on the surrounding environment is a necessary sustainability criterion. Traditional monitoring approaches such as in situ sampling and airborne and satellite-based remote sensing have several limitations. Over the past few decades, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have evolved into popular platforms for remote sensing. UAV-based remote sensing has been successfully applied in different sectors, including agriculture, forestry, urban environments and disaster management. However, the potential of UAVs for mine environmental monitoring has not yet been fully established. This paper envisages the use of UAVs and sensor systems to monitor the environment of future mines.CITATION:Banerjee, B P, Raval, S and Cullen, P J, 2015. Unmanned aerial vehicles for mine environment monitoring, in Proceedings Third International Future Mining Conference, pp 137–144 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Nov 4, 2015

By Hale Y. M

Multielement reconnaissance geochemistry coupled with ground scintillation gamma ray measurements has been used to investigate the dispersion patterns of uranium and other major and trace elements in the arid Palmyrides region of central Syria. This region occupies an interplatform depression in the northern part of the Arabia Plate, upon which sediments up to 10 km thick have accumulated. Outcrops of strongly fractured Mesozoic and Cenozoic rocks form two major mountain belts, the northern and southern Palmyrides, between which is located the closed Ad-Daww basin, with a thick Neogene and Quaternary clastic cover. Among the various lithologies, phosphorites are well represented. Uranium and associated elements have been incorporated into the Upper Cretaceous and Lower Palaeogene sediments, especially the phosphorites, which are well represented in the region. These elements are derived from three possible sources, namely, sea water, Lower Cretaceous volcanism and metalliferous fluids leaking along taphrogenic lineaments. In and around the phosphorites, numerous traces of secondary uranium mineralization occur. Over 500 geochemical samples of outcropping rock, wadi and playa sediments, overburden and groundwaters were taken over an area of approximately 9000 sq km. Most samples were analyzed for 25 major and trace elements by nebulization ICPAES; for As, Sb, Bi and Se by hydride generation and ICPAES; and for U, Th and La and other REE by neutron activation analysis.

Jan 1, 1988

The transition from exploration to feasibility is a stage in the development of mineral resource projects that is frequently not handled well. The transition marks a point in the project development process where resource evaluation priorities change significantly from the discovery of mineralisation and the rapid assessment of the potential tenor of the mineralised system, to the detailed assessment of the deposit.   Information used in the exploration process tends to be of a qualitative or theoretical nature initially, but gradually becomes more quantitative in character as geological knowledge relating to individual prospects grows.   The transition from discovery and rapid exploration of a new deposit occurs at a relatively early stage in project development, coinciding with the first attempt to prepare a resource estimate for the deposit. Fundamental assumptions regarding both structural and grade continuity and uncertainty inherent in existing information need to be made so that they themselves may be addressed during the collection of additional data.   The effective commencement of feasibility studies involve the introduction of new accountabilities either as a result of appointment of a project manager, and through needing to be able to quantify: ò     the quality of data being collected for resource evaluation purposes; ò     confidence associated with resource estimates; and ò     the need to develop an audit trail for the project, required to make the resource evaluation decision-making process as transparent as possible.   Quality assurance is a concept to which exploration geologists have frequently had little exposure. Being able to demonstrate the quality of data used in feasibility studies is, however, a crucial component of the overall risk management and reduction.   Development of a transparent audit trail for data assists in demonstrating the quality of data which is frequently perceived to translate directly to confidence inherent in resource estimates.   Establishing procedures for geological data collection and management also provides a more reliable framework for making decisions that impact on project execution, again resulting in improved confidence in resource estimates and associated geoscientific data.   Regular, independent technical audits, in principle similar to audits conducted for the ongoing certification of standards compliant quality assurance systems, are a major, positive factor in effective project management and execution.   Information used in project evaluation, feasibility and development must be based on facts. Facts are effectively observations that are ideally made systematically, recorded in a systematic manner, and by being collected effectively are not subject to change.   Effectively managing the transition from exploration to resource evaluation, feasibility and project development involves recognising the nature of changes in the nature, detail and scope of geoscientific data required at each stage of project development. In doing so it is essential to: ò     recognise when the change occurs (as early as preparation of the initial resource estimate for a project); ò     accept that the change may not be gradual; and, ò     ensure that the project evaluation team is adequately resourced.   These objectives require recognition of the value of previous experience and the need to instill a true team approach amongst both staff and contractors associated with the project. Regular formal and informal communications between staff, contractors and other stakeholders in the project are an essential tool in ensuring personnel are aware of factors affecting their role in the project.

Jan 1, 2004

By P S. Jaitawat, M Sarim, M P. Roy, P K. Singh, A Joshi

Mining is being carried out using the sublevel open stoping method at the Kayad underground mine. The mine will ultimately reach a depth of 390 m. Kayad village is only 100 m (horizontally) from the underground mining areas. As a result, blast-induced ground vibration is one of the major issues for the residents of the village. This paper deals with the process involved in optimising blast design parameters at the development face blast, slot raise blast and ring hole blast to control blast-induced vibration within safe limits while ensuring improved production, productivity and safety. In total, 1041 development face blasts, 110 slot raise blasts and 52 ring hole blasts were conducted, and 2612 vibration data were monitored in the village at different locations. Initially, electronic delay detonators were used, with an emphasis on controlling vibration in the surface structures. Subsequently, shock tube (Nonel) initiations were used as the blasting faces reached lower depths. A comparative study was also performed for both the initiation systems. The orebody width generally varied from 3.1 to 7 m, and ring hole designs were optimised accordingly. The number of holes in a ring was up to seven and the depth was up to 23 m, depending on the size/width of the orebody. The ring blasts were performed with 64–340 kg of emulsion cartridge explosive and detonated with explosive weight per delay of 10.92–17.16 kg. Extensive experiments were performed and blast-induced vibrations were controlled in the village. Deck blasting (ie up to four explosives decks) was used in a blasthole and the explosive charges were separated by delay detonators, which helped to control the vibration in the village. The actual detonation time of each deck was recorded by monitoring the in-hole velocity of detonation of the explosives, and the charging patterns were optimised accordingly to get the desired blast results.CITATION:Roy, M P, Singh, P K, Sarim, M, Jaitawat, P S and Joshi, A, 2015. Blast design and vibration control at Kayad lead-zinc underground mine, in Proceedings 11th International Symposium on Rock Fragmentation by Blasting, pp 533–544 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Aug 24, 2015

This paper identifies the challenges and opportunities for mining companies and communities in investing in human rights compatible, credible, effective and representative company-community relationships.   The paper draws on the work of Professor John Ruggie, Special Representative to the United Nations Secretary General on Business and Human Rights, and his Protect, Respect and Remedy framework for business and human rights, The CDA Collaborative Learning Project, and the experience of Oxfam Australia. This paper begins with the premise that Australian companies commence operations offshore with high expectations and a willingness to work harmoniously with local communities. However, as companies increasingly engage in global operations - particularly in weak governance and conflict zones - the challenge to establish and sustain rights compatible, meaningful, corporate community relationships and grievances mechanisms becomes both more complex and necessary. Establishing trust and honouring commitments made to communities, including legacy issues, is a critical component in good corporate community relations.   The second part of the paper will identify some of the impacts and challenges of mining that need to be addressed in corporate community negotiations and consultation. Respect for indigenous people's rights and their right to give or withhold consent for a project to proceed is increasingly evident, as is the growing global expectations with regard to revenue transparency. As such, key challenges include: grievance mechanisms; free prior and informed consent; transparency and accountability; the gender impact of mining; resettlement, compensation and benefit sharing; and security issues.   Finally, the paper will provide practical guidance to companies on how to establish effective corporate community relationships. It will include examples, such as human rights impact assessments, gender impact assessments, and establishing local level grievance procedures. The paper will include an Oxfam Australia case study of a dialogue mechanism at Tintaya copper mine in Peru.

Jun 1, 2010