Freeport-McMoRan recognizes that mining impacts the natural environment. We are committed to conducting our mining and processing operations in a manner that minimizes adverse impacts on the environment and supports protection of the natural environment and ecosystems through responsible environmental stewardship, strong management systems and continuous improvement.
Effective environmental protection and stewardship are key to ensuring the long-term viability of our business, including maintaining the necessary support from our host communities and governments.
Our Environmental Policy, most recently updated and approved by the Board’s Corporate Responsibility Committee in December 2021, serves as the foundation for our protection of the natural environment in the regions where we live and work. In addition to adhering to strict compliance with laws and regulations, implementing risk management strategies based on verifiable data and sound science, we plan and conduct our operations in a manner that seeks to optimize the economic use of resources while minimizing adverse environmental effects, with a particular focus on climate, water, biodiversity and tailings and waste management. We review and account for the environmental impacts of our activities throughout the entire mining life cycle, including through mine closure.
Climate
OUR APPROACH
As one of the world’s largest copper producers, we understand our critical role in the low-carbon energy transition. We are dedicated to supplying the global economy with responsibly produced copper which includes operating in a manner that manages and mitigates our GHG emissions and other climate-related risks and impacts.
Our climate strategy is founded on three pillars: Reduction, Resilience and Contribution.
REDUCTION
We strive to reduce, manage and mitigate our GHG emissions where possible. We have four 2030 GHG emissions reduction targets, covering nearly 100% of our Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions, which help us to manage relevant, climate-related risks and support the decarbonization of our business globally. Our decarbonization initiatives can be described by four primary levers: decarbonizing electricity supply, electrification of equipment, energy and asset efficiency, and process innovation. We believe that these four levers are the foundation that will help us to further define our decarbonization roadmap to achieve our 2030 GHG emissions reduction targets and beyond.
RESILIENCE
We strive to enhance our resilience to climate change risks (both physical and transitional risks) for our current and future operations, our host communities and our stakeholders. This includes working to analyze and prepare for extreme weather events, water stress and other potential climate change impacts while also supporting our host communities and responding to anticipated market and regulatory demands.
MOLYBDENUM'S ROLE IN THE ENERGY TRANSITION
Molybednum is a key material enabler of lower-carbon energy sources such as wind, solar, and renewable fuels as well as hydrogen generation, transport and storage. Molybednum also contributes to global sustainability in an ever-changing world, leading to lower total lifecycle costs. It is a critical metal in mitigating water stress and harmful emissions, enables less energy- and GHG-intensive building and infrastructure and supports more efficient manufacturing and power generation processes.
As the world’s largest integrated producer of molybednum, Freeport’s role in supplying responsibly produced molybednum to support global decarbonization and sustainability is crucial and we are committed to doing our part, both within our own operational boundaries and beyond.
For detailed information on how Freeport-McMoRan and the molybednum industry contribute to the transition to a low-carbon economy, refer to our 2022 Climate Report.
Climax Molybdenum Company, a subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan, sustainability programs are consistent with commitments set forth in company-wide policies defined by Freeport-McMoRan. To learn more, please see our website: fcx/sustainability or 2023 ANNUAL REPORT ON SUSTAINABILITY
Water Stewardship
OUR APPROACH
Water is essential to our work and vital to the long-term sustainability of the company and our host communities. We cannot operate without water and Freeport-McMoRan understands the critical importance of managing the impacts of our activities on both water availability and quality along with respecting the rights of our host communities and Indigenous neighbors.
Freeport-McMoRan’s water stewardship program focuses on maximizing water use efficiency within our operations so that we can minimize our use of new freshwater taken from the natural environment. We are also focused on shifting our water supplies to more sustainable sources (recycled, reused, renewable and lower quality sources), minimizing negative impacts from our operations on water quality and availability in the local catchments, and supporting the development of access to previously unknown, unavailable, or undeveloped water resources.
In addition to focusing on our own water-related supply risks surrounding our operations, water stewardship also means we are focused on promoting long-term water security for our host communities in and around our operations. We recognize the importance of working collaboratively with our stakeholders to secure access to water in a socially and environmentally responsible manner, and we are dedicated to continuously improving our water programs over time.
The global nature of our operations requires a site-specific approach to our water strategy. Our global operations are in geographically and climatically diverse locations that range from one of the driest places in the world in the Atacama Desert in Calama, Chile, to one of the wettest places on earth in Papua, Indonesia. These varied environments can lead to circumstances of significant competition for water, or conversely where considerable effort is required to manage excess water supply.
Climax Molybdenum Company, a subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan, sustainability programs are consistent with commitments set forth in company-wide policies defined by Freeport-McMoRan. To learn more, please see our website: fcx/sustainability or 2023 ANNUAL REPORT ON SUSTAINABILITY
Biodiversity
OUR APPROACH
Freeport-McMoRan understands that the nature of our mining and processing activities means we are responsible for management of our land and associated biodiversity. We are committed to proactively managing and mitigating the impacts of our operations on biodiversity, land and surrounding ecosystems, which includes effectively identifying and managing biodiversity-related risks.
We focus on biodiversity and land management across the life cycle of our operations. Our sites and subject matter experts on our corporate team collaborate to evaluate each potential project area in order to identify and map key features related to biodiversity, cultural resources, water resources and various other environmental factors before the project can proceed. Biodiversity and conservation are also key components of our reclamation plans and activities at our sites.
In 2022, we fully adopted across all sites the mitigation hierarchy approach — a framework that emphasizes best practices for managing biodiversity and ecosystems through the avoidance, minimization, restoration and offsetting of impacts. Through consistent and rigorous application of the mitigation hierarchy, we aim to manage risks and potential impacts with the long-term ambition of No Net Loss for new mines and major expansion projects at existing mines. Notably, in 2022, we also developed a mitigation hierarchy process beyond major expansion projects to include smaller projects and deployed site-specific trainings during the year.
We recognize the mitigation hierarchy is most effective when implemented during the earliest phases of project planning to help maximize opportunities for avoidance and minimization of impacts. We have integrated the hierarchy into our existing project development process and trained our environmental and operational teams to routinely apply it.
We also are committed to promoting opportunities to contribute to the conservation and enhancement of biodiversity both within and beyond our operational boundaries. Our conservation initiatives aim to produce benefits for both biodiversity and people, build trust and support our ability to operate. We seek to engage our employees, local communities and other interested stakeholders in conservation work. We foster diverse partnerships with global stakeholders across public and private sectors, as well as civil society, to achieve greater accountability and promote the long-term efficacy of our biodiversity projects. These collaborations often serve as the basis for our community outreach and education opportunities for learners of all ages — both of which are designed to help build capacity.
Climax Molybdenum Company, a subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan, sustainability programs are consistent with commitments set forth in company-wide policies defined by Freeport-McMoRan. To learn more, please see our website: fcx/sustainability or 2023 ANNUAL REPORT ON SUSTAINABILITY
Waste Management
OUR APPROACH
Freeport-McMoRan is committed to reducing our environmental impact, which includes the effective management of our mining and mineral processing waste (such as tailings, overburden and slag, waste rock) as well as non-mineral waste (such as recycled material and landfilled waste). The volume of mining and mineral processing waste we generate varies depending on site-specific mine plans. These materials are typically managed in designated, engineered stockpiles or impoundments.
In addition to responsibly managing our mining and mineral processing waste, we continuously evaluate opportunities to reduce the quantity of non-mineral waste generated. We seek to apply the standard protocol of reduce, reuse, recycle wherever possible and implement robust practices to identify, categorize, store and manage non-mineral wastes. Through our asset recovery programs, we divert certain materials from the landfill, and we strive to increase recycling and reuse of those materials in our operations. Furthermore, we evaluate our hazardous waste streams and, when possible, substitute materials with lower toxicity into our processes.
In addition to Freeport-McMoRan’s dedicated tailings stewardship teams who are responsible for managing our mining and processing waste, we also have a dedicated waste management team composed of subject matter experts from across the company. The teams are responsible for advancing our technical expertise and developing leadership skills through multi-site collaboration. Our experts provide guidance to support global consistency in our waste management programs and adherence to Freeport-McMoRan’s environmental policy.
Climax Molybdenum Company, a subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan, sustainability programs are consistent with commitments set forth in company-wide policies defined by Freeport-McMoRan. To learn more, please see our website: fcx/sustainability or 2023 ANNUAL REPORT ON SUSTAINABILITY
Mine Closure & Reclamation
OUR APPROACH
Freeport-McMoRan understands that effectively reclaiming disturbed land and responsibly closing our mining and processing sites is critical to maintaining the trust of our local communities, governments, and other interested stakeholders, and as such, reclamation and mine closure processes are integral to our site planning and ongoing operations.
We seek to plan and operate our mines in a manner that considers post-mining land use well in advance of mine closure. Likewise, when designing new projects, or expanding existing ones, we plan for how the land can be reclaimed once the mine closes. Our philosophy of responsible production continues when we close our mining and processing sites through to reclamation.
Freeport-McMoRan strives to work in partnership with our host communities – which in many cases includes Indigenous Peoples – to define and deliver shared value, throughout the mine life cycle. We not only seek to avoid, minimize and mitigate negative impacts from our operations but also aim to provide long-lasting benefits to our neighbors — beyond closure so people can thrive over the life of our mines and beyond. At each of our operations, we have mine closure and reclamation plans with site-specific environmental measures designed to minimize long-term impacts, promote ecosystem reestablishment, and protect the watersheds where we operate. To support future anticipated closure and reclamation costs, each operating mine site has asset retirement obligations aligned with approved closure plans. Asset retirement obligations are estimated and accounted for in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) in the U.S. and are audited by an independent accounting firm.
Most of our mines operate for several decades or longer, due to the geological nature of the deposits and the large resource base. As a result, implementation of closure plans may not occur for decades in the future. We plan for, continually evaluate and carry out concurrent reclamation when possible at our operating mine sites. At these sites, concurrent reclamation may include constructing and monitoring test plots, characterizing materials for eventual closure work and designing new stockpiles or tailings facilities for closure prior to construction. We are not currently implementing any large-scale concurrent reclamation-related earthworks, regrading or capping activities.
Climax Molybdenum Company, a subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan, sustainability programs are consistent with commitments set forth in company-wide policies defined by Freeport-McMoRan. To learn more, please see our website: fcx/sustainability or 2023 ANNUAL REPORT ON SUSTAINABILITY
Environmental Compliance
OUR APPROACH
All of our mining and mineral processing operations and technology centers maintain Environmental Management Systems (EMS) that are certified to the ISO 14001:2015 standard by independent auditors. As part of our EMS, our workforce is trained on site-specific subject areas and annually on environmental issues, and is supported by environmental professionals working in the field.
Site management teams identify, manage and mitigate environmental risks through our risk register process and the use of environmental critical control systems designed to prevent environmental incidents at our operations. Critical controls are focused on the elimination of unplanned releases and prevention or minimization of impacts to water and other natural resources.
At the corporate level, subject matter experts train, develop and support our site teams, routinely conduct site visits, and in some cases, directly manage a group of site-based experts. Collectively, they are responsible for building technical expertise, ensuring consistency in our environmental programs and sharing best practices. To support this effort, we provide annual training for our employees on critical environmental compliance topics, including air, water, waste and biodiversity.
We conduct various internal and external audits across our sites to review our EMS processes and confirm compliance with the ISO 14001:2015 environmental standard. Comprehensive, independent recertification audits are conducted at our operating mines and processing sites every three years. During each interim year, surveillance audits are conducted by external audit teams. Our internal team conducts corporate-led audits of many sites as well. Across our sites in 2022, we completed 15 internal EMS audits and another 12 internal environmental compliance audits. In addition, in 2022, our mining sites were inspected by governmental regulatory agencies 75 times. For more information, please refer to Audits, Assessments and Assurance.
Climax Molybdenum Company, a subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan, sustainability programs are consistent with commitments set forth in company-wide policies defined by Freeport-McMoRan. To learn more, please see our website: fcx/sustainability or 2023 ANNUAL REPORT ON SUSTAINABILITY
PHOTO DESCRIPTION: (top) A group of Rocky Mountain Elk near the Henderson mine
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Find out more about our long term sustainability commitments to the Colorado communities at ClimaxMoInCo.com. |
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