Social licence and mining: A critical perspective

In 2002 the International Institute of Environment and Development published the landmark report Breaking New Ground: Mining, Minerals and Sustainable Development (MMSD). The report portrayed an industry distrusted by stakeholders and under threat from opposition groups. When read closely, the MMSD report reveals an inextricable link between industry's ‘survival’ instincts and the notion of a social licence. Within the context of a growing divergence around the expectations of minerals-led development, social licence has emerged as an industry response to opposition and a mechanism to ensure the viability of the sector. The objective of this article is to reinvigorate discussion and debate over how best to frame the industry's social and environmental obligations and how these obligations can be met by the sector. Where social licence has contributed to raising the profile of social issues within a predominantly industrial discourse, a primary failure is its inability to articulate a collaborative developmental agenda for the sector or a pathway forward in restoring the lost confidence of impacted communities, stakeholders, and pressure groups. We argue that a necessary first step in this process is for industry to reconcile its internal risk-orientation with external expectations which requires a less defensive and more constructive approach to stakeholder engagement and collaboration.     

Predicted impact and evaluation of North Carolina's phosphorus indexing tool

Increased concern about potential losses of phosphorus (P) from agricultural fields receiving animal waste has resulted in the implementation of new state and federal regulations related to nutrient management. In response to strengthened nutrient management standards that require consideration of P, North Carolina has developed a site-specific P indexing system called the Phosphorus Loss Assessment Tool (PLAT) to predict relative amounts of potential P loss from agricultural fields. The purpose of this study was to apply the PLAT index on farms throughout North Carolina in an attempt to predict the percentage and types of farms that will be forced to change management practices due to implementation of new regulations. Sites from all 100 counties were sampled, with the number of samples taken from each county depending on the proportion of the state's agricultural land that occurs in that county. Results showed that approximately 8% of producers in the state will be required to apply animal waste or inorganic fertilizer on a P rather than nitrogen basis, with the percentage increasing for farmers who apply animal waste (approximately 27%). The PLAT index predicted the greatest amounts of P loss from sites in the Coastal Plain region of North Carolina and from sites receiving poultry waste. Loss of dissolved P through surface runoff tended to be greater than other loss pathways and presents an area of concern as no best management practices (BMPs) currently exist for the reduction of in-field dissolved P. The PLAT index predicted the areas in the state that are known to be disproportionately vulnerable to P loss due to histories of high P applications, high densities of animal units, or soil type and landscapes that are most susceptible to P loss.     

Headwater riparian forest-floor invertebrate communities associated with alternative forest management practices.

Headwater streams and their riparian zones are a common, yet poorly understood, component of Pacific Northwest, USA, landscapes. We describe the ecological importance of headwater stream riparian zones as habitat for forest-floor invertebrate communities and assess how alternative management strategies for riparian zones may impact these communities. We compared community composition of forest-floor invertebrates at increasing distances along trans-riparian (stream edge to upslope) transects in mature forests, clearcuts, and riparian buffers of approximately 30-m width with upslope clearcuts. Invertebrates were collected using pitfall traps in five replicate blocks of three treatments each in the Willamette National Forest, Oregon, USA. We measured microclimate and microhabitat variables at pitfall locations. Despite strong elevation and block effects on community composition, community analyses revealed a distinct "riparian" invertebrate community within 1 m of the stream edge in mature forest treatments, which was strongly related to cool, humid microclimate conditions. Invertebrate community composition in buffer treatments was far more similar to that of mature forests than to clearcuts; a pattern mirrored by microclimate. These results suggest that, within our study sites, forest-floor invertebrate distributions are strongly associated with microclimate and that riparian buffers of approximately 30-m width do provide habitat for many riparian and forest species. Riparian reserves may serve as effective forest refugia and/or dispersal corridors for invertebrates and other taxa, and their incorporation into watershed management plans likely will contribute to meeting persistence and connectivity objectives.     

Tales of science and defiance: the case for co-learning and collaboration in bridging the science/emotion divide in water recycling debates

Although science is generally assumed to be well integrated into rational decision-making models, it can be used to destabilise consultative processes, particularly when emotions are involved. Water policies are often seen as debates over technical and engineering issues, but can be highly controversial. Recycled water proposals, in particular, can create highly emotive conflicts. Through a case study regarding the rejection of recycled water proposals in the south-east Queensland, Australia, we explore the influence of science and emotions in contemporary water planning. We highlight the dangers inherent in promoting technical water planning issues at the expense of appropriate consideration of citizen concerns. Combining the science–policy interface and stakeholder engagement literatures, we advocate for collaborative decision-making processes that accommodate emotions and value judgements. A more collaborative stakeholder engagement model, founded on the principles of co-learning, has the potential to broaden the decision-making base and to promote better and more inclusive decision-making.     

Groundwater Nitrate Concentration Reductions in a Riparian Buffer Enrolled in the NC Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program

Riparian buffers have been used for many years as a best management practice to decrease the effects of nonpoint pollution from watersheds. The NC Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (NC CREP) has established buffers to treat groundwater nitrate‐nitrogen (NO₃^?‐N) from agricultural sources in multiple river basins. A maturing 46 m wide riparian buffer enrolled in NC CREP was studied to determine its effectiveness in reducing groundwater NO₃^?‐N concentrations from a cattle pasture fertilized with poultry litter. Three monitoring blocks that included groundwater quality wells, water table wells, and soil redox probes, were established in the buffer. NO₃^?‐N concentrations decreased significantly across the buffer in all of the monitoring blocks with mean reductions of 76‐92%. Many biological processes, including denitrification and plant uptake, may have been responsible for the observed NO₃^?‐N reductions but could not be differentiated in this study. However, mean reductions in Cl^? concentrations ranged from 48‐65% through the blocks, which indicated that dilution was an important factor in observed NO₃^?‐N reductions. These findings should be carefully considered for future buffer enrollments when assigning nitrogen removal credits.     

Community relations and mining: Core to business but not “core business”

Over the past two decades the global mining industry has witnessed the necessity and emergence of community relations and development (CRD) functions, essentially under the rubric of sustainable development and corporate social responsibility (CSR). These functions provide companies with mechanisms through which to engage and manage their relationships with key stakeholder groups, share development benefits and protect business interests. Despite widespread claims by the industry that companies have adopted CSR as a ‘core competence’, we argue that the industry has yet to incorporate the CRD function as part of ‘core business’ at the level of practice. This article characterises a CRD function and related processes within the context of a large-scale mining operation in West Africa. Findings reflect a more universal trend relating to the function and organisational positioning of CRD practice in the resources sector. The authors argue that functional equity needs to be established if the sustainable development agenda is to have a genuine future within the mining industry.     

Effects of Lawn Maintenance on Nutrient Losses Via Overland Flow During Natural Rainfall Events1

Spence, Porchè L., Deanna L. Osmond, Wesley Childres, Joshua L. Heitman, and Wayne P. Robarge, 2012. Effects of Lawn Maintenance on Nutrient Losses Via Overland Flow During Natural Rainfall Events. Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 48(5): 909‐924. DOI: 10.1111/j.1752‐1688.2012.00658.x Abstract: A sampling system was used to evaluate the effect of residential lawn management on nutrient losses via overland flow generated during natural rainfall events from three residential landscapes: a high maintenance fescue lawn (HMFL), a low maintenance fescue lawn (LMFL), and a mixed forested residential landscape (FRL). A sampling system was located in designated areas within each landscape such that 100% of the runoff follows natural flow paths to the outlet ports and collects in sterile Nalgene^® B³ media bags (Thermo Fisher Scientific, Rochester, NY). A rainfall event was defined as producing ≥2.54 mm of water. A total of 87 rainfall events occurred during a 20‐month monitoring period. The total runoff volume collected from the LMFL was higher than from the HMFL and FRL, but on average <1% of the total rainfall was collected from the three landscapes. Mean nitrate concentrations from each lawn did not exceed 0.6 mg N/l. Nutrient unit area losses from the HMFL, LMFL, and FRL were 1,000 times less than fertilizer and throughfall inputs, which were due to the presence of well‐structured soils (low bulk densities) with high infiltration rates. This study demonstrated that the frequency of runoff, total runoff volumes, and nutrient losses during natural rainfall events are lower from highly maintained (i.e., irrigation, fertilizer application, and reseeding) densely uniform manicured lawns than low maintenance lawns and forested residential landscapes.     

Applying the triple bottom line: Telework and the environment

The “triple bottom line” approach emphasizes not only economic goals, but social and environmental objectives as well. The “telework” option—in which employees work from home or a satellite office rather than from a central location—would appear to advance all three of these aims. But a close look at the specifics of teleworking makes clear that more data are needed to determine its ultimate impact. Moreover, despite its apparent advantages, teleworking is gaining acceptance less quickly than might be expected. For these reasons, telework offers a fascinating case study in the difficulties of applying the triple bottom line concept.© 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Sustainability metrics for the business enterprise

Sustainable development poses challenges and opportunities to the development and management of business and technological systems. Most significantly, sustainability moves beyond meeting an economic and environmental bottom line to a triple bottom line of integrated economic, environmental, and social factors. Over 30 years there has been a paradigm shift that has led to the greening of industrial practices with regards to the environment. As evidence continues to demonstrate linkages between environmental causes and effects, problem-solving techniques have been developed to meet both economic and environmental goals along with metrics to measure environmental performance. Today, sustainable development presents another paradigm shift and adds social considerations as a third element to the bottom line. This article describes the evolution from greening to sustaining and outlines the implication of developing metrics in the sustainable development context.© 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.