UNEP is working across the minerals sector to protect communities from pollution, curtail waste and promote responsibility.

In a new study, the International Resource Panel called for dramatic changes to how the world finances and governs the use of energy transition minerals. These minerals are the building blocks of clean energy technologies like solar panels, wind turbines and electric vehicle batteries. Most large-scale mining-related companies that responded to a survey during the development of the study, Financing the Responsible Supply of Energy Transition Minerals for Sustainable Development, believe that environmental, social and governance reporting will help attract new investors to the sector.

Many mining operations produce tailings, the waste left over after minerals are extracted from ore. Last year, UNEP and partners came together to launch the Global Tailings Management Institute, an independent body designed to ensure mining companies safely manage these often-toxic materials. The institute will oversee how firms handle tailings based on a standard co-developed by UNEP. The aim is to reduce the risk of tailings accidents, which have in the recent past resulted in significant fatalities.

For some minerals, much of the extraction is done at small-scale and artisanal mines. That’s especially true for gold, where 80 per cent of miners work at these smaller facilities. The UNEP-led planetGOLD programme, which aims to improve production practices and working conditions at these smaller mines, expanded to 26 countries. It has supported more than 13,700 miners and helped prevent the release of nearly 38 tonnes of mercury, a highly toxic substance often used in smaller mines.