BHP case study a first for natural capital accounting in mining
May 08 2023 - 7:54PM
In a first for the mining industry, BHP has published a pilot case
study on the application of natural capital accounting principles
in the mining sector.
The ‘Natural Capital Accounting for the Mining
Sector: Beenup Site Pilot Case Study’ (Beenup Case Study), based on
a case study at BHP’s closed and rehabilitated Beenup Mineral Sands
site in southern Western Australia, is the first attempt at
trialling natural capital accounting within the mining
industry.
Natural capital accounts are a way to measure
the amount, condition and value of environmental assets, helping to
describe changes in ecosystems and how they could impact wellbeing
and economies.
BHP Chief Legal, Governance and External Affairs
Officer, Caroline Cox, said BHP’s aspiration is to contribute to
‘nature positive’ outcomes, with the goal of having at least 30 per
cent of the land and water it stewards, approximately two million
hectares, under conservation, restoration or regenerative practices
by 2030.
“We know that objectively measuring our progress
and understanding the impacts of our efforts will only be possible
using tools such as natural capital accounts. Our Beenup Case Study
provides important insights, so we’re pleased to share it and
engage with others on the development of natural capital accounting
within the industry.”
BHP Vice President Environment, Anne Dekker,
said tools like natural capital accounting would enable better
decision making for sectors of society who are working to halt and
reverse current trends in nature loss by 2030.
“When we look at the case study’s findings we
see some expected outcomes from mine rehabilitation activities,
such as increases in species and habitat, but also a couple of
outcomes that were not part of the original rehabilitation design,
such as a net gain in carbon storage and significant improvement in
quality of water that flows through the site from local pastoral
operations to environmental receptors and communities
downstream.
“So, the case study has really given us a
foundation for considering how we can evolve natural capital
accounting concepts for mine sites and sets us up to take the next
steps, such as applying them at our operational sites and working
with others to apply them within the industry more broadly.”
BHP selected the closed and rehabilitated Beenup
site for the pilot case study as it enabled retrospective tracking
of different land use scenarios over a period of time, was
supported by a rich knowledge bank and the rehabilitation planning
had nature-positive outcomes as an early intent.
Further information
The Beenup Case Study was prepared by Syrinx Environmental for
BHP and is a collaboration between BHP, CRC TiME, CSIRO, Curtin
University, Syrinx Environmental, The University of Western
Australia and the Western Australian Biodiversity Science
Institute. The full case study can be viewed here:
www.bhp.com/beenup
BHP owns, leases or manages an area at its operated assets of
just under 6.5 million hectares (excluding greenfield exploration
licence areas), with a mining operational disturbance footprint of
just around two per cent of that area. Most of this land it
stewards is located in Australia and includes non-operational land
uses such as pastoral leases and land set aside for
conservation.
Nature positive is defined by the World Business Council for
Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and the Taskforce on Nature-related
Financial Disclosures (TNFD) as ‘A high-level goal and concept
describing a future state of nature (e.g. biodiversity, ecosystem
services and natural capital) which is greater than the current
state.’ It includes land and water management practices that halt
and reverse nature loss – that is, supporting healthy, functioning
ecosystems.
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/653a964f-a041-455c-b93d-a047c1875a09
BHP media contact
Jimmy Clothier
Mobile: +61 413 391 031
Email: jimmy.clothier@bhp.com
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