ICMM, TNFD release new nature-focused sector guidance for metals and mining industry  

The International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) announced Friday the publication of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) Sector Guidance: Metals and Mining.

TNFD’s new sector guidance and metrics will help companies to accelerate their implementation of ICMM’s nature commitments and will enable mining and metals companies to identify, assess, manage and disclose “nature related issues”, ICMM said.

An additional 96 organizations to sign on brings the total number of companies already committed to disclose their material nature-related issues to investors and other stakeholders based on the TNFD recommendations to 416. Drawn from over 50 jurisdictions, the publicly listed companies represent over $6 trillion in market capitalization, an increase of 50% since the TNFD’s Early Adopter announcement in January.

ICMM is TNFD’s official piloting partner for the mining and metals sector, and has collaborated with 13 companies and cross-sector partners including NGOs to develop TNFD’s sector guidance and reporting metrics.

This material supports mining and metals companies implementing TNFD’s wider framework in managing the nuances that are unique to the sector, as they work on integrating nature-related issues into their governance, strategic planning, risk management and disclosures, it said.

“As a Taskforce Member and early adopter of TNFD, and as a member of ICMM, we were pleased to play an active role in the development of the Sector Guidance for Metals and Mining, representing another important milestone in the progression of TNFD and a significant contribution to the Global Biodiversity Framework’s Target 15,” Anglo American CEO Duncan Wanblad said in a news release.

“Our sector has an important synergistic association with nature and as a sector we have a great opportunity to be an enabler of positive change bringing together NGO partners, community and regional stakeholders and academic institutions to drive measurable actions on the ground,” Wanblad said.

In January, ICMM’s 24 members, which represent around one-third of the global sector, committed to taking urgent action on nature, setting out a series of actions across their direct operations, value chains, wider landscapes and creating the conditions required to achieve systems transformation.

This includes disclosing material nature-related impacts, dependencies, risks and opportunities for operations in priority locations by 2026 and the most material value chain categories or issues by 2030. TNFD’s new resources launched Friday will help to support this enhanced level of disclosure. Mining and metals companies have been reporting on their impacts on biodiversity for decades, this guidance goes much further to capture how their interactions with nature impacts businesses, ICMM said.

“We must acknowledge that mining activities have contributed to nature loss, but ICMM members are demonstrating how responsible mining can play a leading role in creating a nature positive future,” ICMM CEO Rohitesh Dhawan stated.

“ICMM’s January commitments were the first collective sector approach to nature launched so far – one that we hope will provide learnings and guidance for other companies in the sector, and indeed other industries,” Dhawan said. “TNFD’s new sector guidance and metrics can help companies to accelerate their implementation of these commitments, and their wider nature positive efforts.”