Most Controversial Mining Companies of 2011 – by RepRisk

RepRisk is the leading provider of dynamic business intelligence on Environmental, Social and Governance risks (ESG).

MOST CONTROVERSIAL MINING COMPANIES OF 2011

The extraction industry is traditionally one of the most criticized by various stakeholders for its negative impacts on communities and the environment. This RepRisk special report focuses on mining companies and their projects in 2011. In order of ranking, the 10 Most Controversial Mining Companies of 2011 were:

1. Alpha Natural Resources
2. Newmont Mining Corp
3. Glencore International
4. BHP Billiton
5. Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold
6. Rio Tinto
7. Compania de Minas Buenaventura
7. Barrick Gold (equal ranking)
9. Anglo American
9 Vedanta Resources (equal ranking)

These mining giants and their global operations have come under fire for allegedly polluting potable water supplies, scarring landscapes and damaging sensitive ecosystems. There were also numerous allegations detected by RepRisk related to impacts on local communities and effects on the traditional way of life of indigenous peoples. Furthermore, these companies were accused of having poor occupational health and safety standards, which resulted in toxic emissions and accidents that have caused injuries,
fatalities or serious illness.

The negative stakeholder sentiment captured throughout 2011 by RepRisk indicates that it may be in a company’s best interests to heed the warning signals and proactively address the environmental, social and governance issues raised by various activist groups, employees, governments, shareholders, and communities. For some companies, such as Vedanta and Rio Tinto, mining operations were so heavily criticized that activists disrupted their Annual General Meetings, calling on the companies to put a stop
to alleged human rights abuses near their work sites and improve their stance on the environment. For Newmont and Minas Buenaventura, the outcry surrounding their Conga Mine led to the suspension of the project in late November.

BHP Billiton attracted a great deal of NGO criticism for its allegedly widespread environmental destruction and human rights abuses. Following Glencore’s Initial Public Offering in 2011, public and media interest in the company’s activities increased and it was heavily criticized for operations in Africa and South America. Alpha Natural Resources’ purchase of Massey Energy saw its RepRisk Index soar, making it the most controversial miner of the year.

Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold faced allegations of human rights abuses, particularly in Papua New Guinea where its subsidiary was accused of perpetuating the abuse of workers by paying police to guard its Grasberg Mine. It was further accused of contaminating water bodies with heavy metals from mine tailings. Barrick Gold had to contend with multiple claims of sexual abuse by security staff, and Anglo American faced ongoing lawsuits by former mineworkers in South Africa, who attributed their illnesses
to having worked for the company.

For the rest of this report please go to the RepRisk website: http://www.reprisk.com/downloads/mccreports/23/150312%20Top%2010%20Most%20Controversial%20Mining%20Companies_RepRisk.pdf