NDLI: Sustainability Reporting and Water Resources: a Preliminary Assessment of Embodied Water and Sustainable Mining

Content Provider	Springer Nature Link
Author	Mudd, Gavin M.
Copyright Year	2008
Abstract	This paper presents a preliminary compilation and analysis of the water reported to have been consumed by a range of various mineral commodities and compares it to mine production data. This has been undertaken to assess and quantify the ‘embodied water’ of mineral products—a key aspect of sustainability (embodied water is the total water required to produce a good or service). At present, although the use of formal reporting protocols such as the global reporting initiative (GRI) is increasing, there are still critical weaknesses. Some key aspects to facilitate proper water accounting are not listed in sustainability reports, including the extent of recycled water used, mine site water inventories, the quality of various waters, and impacts on water resources. Based on the data compiled, there is wide variation in the water used for different mineral commodities as well as for the same commodity. There is little evidence for ‘economies of scale’ in base metals and bulk minerals, though for precious metals (gold, platinum), greater throughput does tend to lead to greater efficiency. For many mines, there is little evidence of improving efficiency over time, although some mines have made substantive improvements in reducing water consumed. The grade of ore being processed is clearly critical in understanding the embodied water of minerals, with declining ore grades leading to an increased chance of higher embodied water in the future. Given that many metals are declining in average ore grade, the sensitivity of embodied water to ore grade provides a major sustainability challenge for mining generally. In summary, the embodied water of minerals is clearly significant, and will likely gradually increase in the future, and so must be more completely accounted for to understand a fundamental aspect of sustainability and mining—that of water resources.
Starting Page	136
Ending Page	144
Page Count	9
File Format	PDF
ISSN	10259112
Journal	Mine Water and the Environment
Volume Number	27
Issue Number	3
e-ISSN	16161068
Language	English
Publisher	Springer-Verlag
Publisher Date	2008-04-22
Publisher Institution	International Mine Water Association (IMWA)
Publisher Place	Berlin, Heidelberg
Access Restriction	One Nation One Subscription (ONOS)
Subject Keyword	Embodied water Sustainable mining Sustainability reporting Water consumption Water resources Ecotoxicology Energy Economics Sedimentology Hydrogeology Geology
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Water Science and Technology Geotechnical Engineering and Engineering Geology

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