Integrated Annual Report 2014

Natural capital

HOW WE SEE IT

The natural capital at our disposal includes water, land, energy and other natural materials we use to mine and process gold and by-product uranium for the benefit of our stakeholders – and we are committed to responsible stewardship of these natural resources and the ecological environment for present and future generations.

Sibanye strives to minimise or rectify adverse environmental impacts and maximise positive interventions.

What we mean...

  • We uphold the highest standards of environmental management and comply with applicable legislation governing the efficient use of resources, responsible waste management, conservation of biodiversity, and closure and post mining land use.
  • Our employees are encouraged to take ownership of environmental management, guided by our Environmental Policy, in everyday practice.
ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT STRATEGY – IMPLEMENTED BY ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT

Total Environmental Management System (EMS)

  • Licence to operate
    • Strategy: “back to basics” in terms of compliance
    • Management assurance of environmental management programme and legal compliance
    • Environmental scanning and analysis
    • Impact analysis (environmental impact assessment)
    • Corporate reliance (assurance of data in environmental management programme, water use licences, environmental authorisations and other approvals/permits)
    • Business enabler (integrative function)
    • Environmental performance monitoring/flagging evaluation
  • Reputation and brand equity
    • Alignment with key strategies such as stakeholder engagement, brand and reputation management, among others
    • Strong positioning of Sibanye’s environmental component of sustainability reporting
    • Strategic partnerships with environmental and other NGOs
  • Climate change and carbon management
    • Refine Carbon Management Policy
    • Roll-out and implementation
    • Advocacy and stakeholder engagement
  • Closure without liability
    • Strategy: closure and rehabilitation
    • Manage environmental liabilities and process financial provisioning
    • Due consideration of social aspects around mine closure
  • Growth and expansion
    • Environmental due diligence of new projects
    • Environmental permitting (environmental impact assessment, atmospheric emissions licence, waste management and, rezoning where applicable) One-stop shop service to Projects Department

Key performance areas

  • Inputs into day-to-day management of operational environment issues
  • Environmental scanning and strategy development
  • Air quality licensing and monitoring
  • Land management
  • Waste management
  • Water management
  • Carbon footprinting and adaptation
  • Environmental impact assessments (EIAs)
  • Support new business development projects
  • Closure management
  • Carbon tax and energy efficiency
  • Audit management (internal, external and regulatory)
  • Emergency medical services
  • Environmental communication and messaging
  • Integrated annual report [assurance of key performance indicators (KPIs)]
  • Our compliance with the terms of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, 2002 (SOX) is documented in the Form 20-F
  • Performance reports