Deeper Luxury Report - WWF UK

are not meeting the challenge. A survey in the UK with
Amnesty International found that more than threequarters
of retailers who responded reported having
no auditing procedures in place to combat the trade
in conflict diamonds. Almost a third of those surveyed,
including leading luxury house Cartier, failed to respond
to repeated requests from Amnesty and Global Witness
to provide information about their policies. 86
Gold
Mining for gold and other precious metals used in
luxury goods poses significant social and environmental
challenges. For example, gold mining can displace
communities, contaminate drinking water, hurt workers
and destroy pristine environments. In the past, the mining
industry has threatened natural areas, including those
that are officially protected. Nearly three-quarters of
active mines and exploration sites encroach on regions
that have been defined as having high conservation
value. 87
Mining is a major threat to biodiversity and to
frontier forests (large tracts of relatively undisturbed
forest). One example comes from the Indonesian
province of West Papua, home to the largest protected
area in South-east Asia, containing five WWF-classified
ecoregions in its 2.5 million-hectare expanse. 88
Next to
this Lorentz National Park, now a World Heritage Site,
is a large, open-pit mine operated by PT Freeport
Indonesia. This mine has caused devastating harm to
its immediate environment by dumping 110,000 tons
of toxic mine tailings each day into the Ajikwa river. By
the time it closes, it will have excavated a hole covering
an estimated 230 km 2 in the forest that will be visible
from space. 89
In Mongolia, rapid expansion of the gold mining industry
has led to the deviation of rivers, loss of water flow and
degradation of water quality, creating erosion and
undermining traditional herding communities. Much of
the mining activity is illegal and conducted without prior
impact assessments. While WWF is working at the local
level with communities, decision-makers and investors
to promote more responsible mining in Mongolia 90
, we
believe that more should be done by luxury brands to
introduce better standards throughout their supply chains.
Earthworks and Oxfam have helped in this regard by
developing a set of “Golden Rules” of social, environmental
and human rights criteria for more responsible gold
production (Box 2). Their No Dirty Gold campaign
encourages brands and retailers to endorse these
criteria and to persuade their suppliers to meet them.
The campaign is supported by a handful of luxury
brands, including Cartier, Piaget, Tiffany & Co and
Van Cleef & Arpels. 91
In addition, there are now over 70
member companies across the gold and diamond supply
chain that have joined the Council for Responsible
Jewellery Practices, to promote action from mining to
retailing: (see: www.responsiblejewellery.com)
Despite these advances, much remains to be done in
order to clean up the production and trading of gold and
other precious metals. The luxury watch and jewellery
Box 2:
Golden Rules for Mining
Respect for basic human rights outlined
in international conventions and law.
Free, prior and informed consent of
affected communities.
Safe working conditions.
Respect for workers’ rights and labour
standards (including the eight core
ILO conventions).
Ensure that operations are not located in
areas of armed or militarised conflict.
Ensure that projects do not force
communities off their land.
No dumping of mine wastes into oceans,
rivers, lakes or streams.
Ensure that projects are not located in
protected areas, fragile ecosystems or other
areas of high conservation or ecological value.
Ensure that projects do not generate
sulphuric acid in perpetuity.
Cover all costs of closing down and cleaning
up mine sites.
Fully disclose information about the social
and environmental effects of projects.
Allow independent verification of the above
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