Environmental management and assurance

Our Environmental Global Performance Standards are central to our environmental governance. They cover areas including greenhouse gases, air emissions, land and biodiversity, rehabilitation and closure, waste, and water. The Standards set the minimum requirements to meet the statutory obligations applicable in the jurisdictions in which we operate, along with additional requirements to enable our Assets to go beyond.  

Our Assets maintain individual Environmental Management Systems (EMS) overseen by site Environment Teams. They include site-specific environmental risk registers, technical manuals, and Management Plans for environmental aspects such as biodiversity, water, waste, and greenhouse gases. They also house the site compliance inspection procedures and schedules, and the databases and registers to support assurance. The EMS are supported by a suite of additional systems for monitoring specific environmental and spatial data.

Assurance activities are undertaken by Environment Teams and the Corporate Head of Function as well as external third parties. Onsite Environment Teams conduct quarterly inspections of major contractors for compliance with environmental standards and requirements. These activities are supported by targeted internal and external assurance activities. In 2022, line 1 and 2 assurance was undertaken at all operating Assets across a suite of Environmental Performance Standards and tailings storage facilities. For data associated with specific reporting periods, see Annual and Sustainability Reports and the 2022 Annual and Sustainability Review.