Annual Report 2007 - Antofagasta plc

ContentsDescription of Group’s Activities 38Governance and Ethics 39Systems and Risk Management 39Communication 42Working in Partnership with Other Organisations 42Human Resources 44IntroductionThe Group aims to discover world class mineraldeposits and develop and operate its assets safely,responsibly and efficiently, in order to provide goodreturns to shareholders and benefit stakeholdersthroughout economic cycles. Sustainable developmentconsiderations are an integral part of the Group’sdecision-making process and it adopts a long-termview in formulating strategy, company policy andeveryday business procedures.Mining companies can be instrumental in thedevelopment of economies and communities.The Group recognises both its global and localresponsibilities and seeks to contribute to the socioeconomicdevelopment of communities located aroundits operations and projects principally through formingmutually beneficial local partnerships.Some of the Group’s operations have sustainabledevelopment policies in place, which are implementedin day-to-day business in a number of ways. TheGroup places the adoption of safe work practicesat the centre of operational activity. It exercisesstewardship of natural resources to manage socialand environmental risk and to minimise pollution andenvironmental footprint; this includes an integratedapproach to the conservation of biodiversity andland and water management. It seeks to minimisestoppages in its mining and processing operations,minimise costs and maximise the benefit gained froma motivated workforce. These policies and practicesare underlined by a culture of strong managementcombined with a focus on innovation, explorationand investment.Occupational Health 46Safety 48Environment 49Community Relations 55Awards and Recognition 59As explained in the Chairman’s Review on pages5 to 21, the Group has recently acquired a numberof growth opportunities in Chile and abroad, andcontinues to seek opportunities to secure world-classmining assets. At the same time, the mining industryin Chile has been confronted by new issues in areassuch as energy and water usage, labour markets,increased competition for resources and increasedscrutiny from its different stakeholders. Thesedevelopments provide new challenges andopportunities which need to be addressed inan effective and timely manner while taking thesustainable development considerations outlinedabove into account.Accordingly, during 2007 the Board decided to developand implement a Sustainable Development Policy toprovide a structured framework through which itsstrategy and growth plans could be achieved;formulation of this is now in progress. Thisprocess, which is being led by the mining division’senvironmental and external affairs departments, hasinvolved Board members, senior management atcorporate and operational level and the sustainabilityteams of each mining operation. The processwill result in specific policies for environment andcommunity relations which are currently under reviewand are intended to be applied across the Group.The Group has also placed greater emphasison its accountability for reporting on sustainabledevelopment matters beyond the informationcontained in this Annual Report. During 2007,Los Pelambres published its first annual sustainabilityreport (relating to the 2006 calendar year) as well asCSR REPORTAntofagasta plc Annual Report and Financial Statements 2007 37