Dear friends,
Very best wishes of the season to all of you!
After a very busy period with the BHP AGM, the COP26 talks, a visit to London by friends from Save Our Sperrins in Northern Ireland, and a process of hiring two new part-time workers, we are ending the year at London Mining Network with some technical problems with our website which means that I cannot share with you a number of posts about our recent work. Apologies for this. I hope that the articles included below will be of interest, and we will send a shorter follow-up newsletter early in the New Year when our website is up and running again. That newsletter will, all being well, include some of the reflection on the COP26 talks, which at an official level were such a spectacular failure but which were accompanied by such a marvellous coming together of grassroots protest around the world – and it is this which gives hope for the future. Below, meanwhile, you will find some COP26 related material shared by our friends at Yes to Life, No to Mining.
On 12 January we will be holding the first of 2022’s programme of our Resisting Mining Book Club events, with a discussion of Planetary Mine with author Martín Arboleda. Details should return soon to our website, but meanwhile you can find details on our Facebook page.
To save the climate, we clearly have to move as rapidly as possible away from the use of coal. Please take action with our member group Coal Action Network to press the Welsh and UK governments not to expand coal mining in Wales.
Coal is not only damaging when burnt: coal mining can also release large quantities of methane, which has a far worse effect on global heating than carbon dioxide. Coal use is actually increasing. There is also the issue, as with other mining projects, of human rights impacts: below you can read about such impacts at the Cerrejon mine in Colombia and in the Hasdeo Forests in India. Funding of coal is under the spotlight, with analyses of the policies of HSBC and multilateral development banks and of BlackRock’s funding of Adani, the Indian company involved in the Hasdeo Forests and now also a sponsor of the London Science Museum (watch out for our planned protests about this in January).
But we also have to avoid replacing one form of damaging extractivism with another. Mining of minerals for the energy transition brings its own problems, as we have noted so many times before. Rio Tinto is among those under pressure for lithium mining plans, in Rio Tinto’s case in Serbia. Cobalt mining in DRC is marred by human rights problems. Uranium mining for nuclear energy is a false solution too. We need to find socially just ways to reduce use of both energy and materials.
Gabriel Boric, the newly-elected President of Chile, has an opportunity to address the problems caused by largescale mining of copper and lithium, two of the key ‘transition’ minerals. He is likely to adopt a different policy from his predecessors, and many of our Chilean colleagues are excited about the possibilities. We will publish our own analyses in due course. Meanwhile, we include an industry perspective.
You will also find articles below about UK-linked mining in Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Romania, Spain and Tanzania, about legislative developments in the UK (including a note on public attitudes) and the European Union, about how to defend your community against extractivism, and about alternatives.
On 20 January, an Extraordinary General Meeting of BHP in London will be held to gain shareholder approval for the ending of mining giant BHP’s dual listed structure. This will mean that BHP will no longer hold AGMs in London, leading to a reduction in opportunities for those affected by its operations to address its board and shareholders. We will intervene in that meeting. More details in due course.
We will be taking a break now until Tuesday 4 January. May 2022 be full of hope and new beginnings!
All the best,
Richard Solly,
Co-ordinator, London Mining Network.
In this mailout
Take Action
Demand Ministers block the Aberpergwm coal mine extension
Event
Resisting Mining Book Club: Planetary Mine with Martín Arboleda
News
1) Chilean miners ask leftist president-elect to foster industry
2) Rio Tinto in the news
3) News about Anglo American
4) Glencore in the news
5) BHP closer to scrapping dual listing after board approval
6) Coal and coal finance
7) Uranium: it won’t help the climate, and suffers a setback in Spain
8) Europe, renewables and the ‘green’ economy
9) UK mining companies in Peru
10) Colombian farmers take on David vs. Goliath fight against ‘exploitative’ gold mining
11) Mining damage in Brazil
12) Will Barrick Gold CEO Go Beyond Rhetoric to Deliver Justice for Victims of Police Killings at Tanzanian Mine?
13) Exploitation of workers in DR Congo taints electric vehicles
14) Activists derail Euro Sun’s plans for the Rovina mine
15) EU: Business & human rights experts & leaders issue joint statement to President von der Leyen & EU Commission on delay to Sustainable Corporate Governance initiative
16) Guide: protecting your community from the extractive industries
17) Beyond Extractivism with the YLNM Network
18) COP26 resources from Yes to Life No to Mining
19) IMF & other international standard setters examining government accounting for mineral wealth: Goa Foundation
20) Deep Sea Mining – what could it do to the ocean?
21) Momentum for change: UK public joins business and civil society to demand new Business, Human Rights and Environment law
22) Turning the Tide – A Bankwatch Documentary
23) Due diligence in the UK is coming down to the devilish details
Take Action
Demand Ministers block the Aberpergwm coal mine extension
18 more years of mining 40 million tonnes of coal, adding around 100 MILLION tonnes of CO2 plus methane to our atmosphere? Demand better now – the licence for an Aberpergwm coal mine extension could be awarded any day.
Event
Resisting Mining Book Club: Planetary Mine with Martín Arboleda
Our Resisting Mining Book Club returns in January! We’ll be discussing ‘Planetary Mine: Territories of Extraction under Late Capitalism’ with author Martín Arboleda on 12 January – register now to get access to a PDF extract of the book!
News
1) Chilean miners ask leftist president-elect to foster industry
The National Mining Society (Sonami), an industry body, congratulated Gabriel Boric and said voters hade “sent a clear message” about the need to maintain Chile’s economic and social development.
2) Rio Tinto in the news
Rio Tinto picks outgoing Canadian ambassador to China as chairman
Rio Tinto has picked outgoing Canadian ambassador to China and veteran management consultant to lead its board as the miner tries to put the destruction of ancient rock shelters in Australia behind it.
Australian mining state passes Aboriginal heritage protection law
Indigenous heritage protection has become a major issue after global miner Rio Tinto in 2020 legally destroyed culturally significant rock shelters dating back more than 46,000 years for an iron ore mine, sparking public and investor outrage.
Rio Tinto to write off $2.3bn Oyu Tolgoi loan to Mongolia
Rio Tinto will cancel a $2.3 billion debt owed by Mongolia as part of the government’s share of the development costs for the giant Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine, the country’s Prime Minister said.
The world wants more lithium but doesn’t want more mines
The opposition Rio faces is replicating around the world, and industry executives consider it their biggest challenge going forward. Southern Copper Corp. is struggling to get government support for a controversial $1.4 billion project in Peru, and Lithium Americas Corp. was taken to U.S. federal court over its planned mine in Nevada.
Novak Djokovic takes stand for protesters in Serbia
Serbia has been rocked by protests as anger swells over a government-backed plan to allow a mining company to extract lithium in the country.
Fishfolk protest Rio Tinto mine
The villagers of Andrakaraka, southern Madagascar, are protesting against the Rio Tinto QMM ilmenite mine.
Madagascar: Tany Collective welcomes release for lack of evidence of fishermen representatives arrested for protesting against Rio Tinto
A crowd larger than the one on hearing day gathered to listen to the verdict of the Tolagnaro Fort-Dauphin Tribunal on Monday, December 7th.
3) News about Anglo American
Mining giant concedes emissions ‘blowout’ at Queensland coalmine
Documents show Anglo American breached carbon limits at Capcoal mine by at least 841,000 tonnes over four years
Anglo American flags major design changes at UK fertilizer project
Anglo American flagged major design changes to the vast fertilizer project being built beneath the North Yorks Moors national park in England, which it acquired last year when buying British junior Sirius Minerals.
4) Glencore in the news
Glencore widens review of assets, eyes acquisitions
Miner and trader Glencore said it was in the process of selling 10 more assets, putting another 15 under review and considering acquisitions as it moves to refocus its portfolio on what it termed “commodities of the future”.
These Australian Coal Mines Are Methane Super-Emitters
New estimates based on satellite data show Glencore’s Hail Creek mine spewed 230,000 tons of the powerful greenhouse gas a year in 2018 and 2019.
5) BHP closer to scrapping dual listing after board approval
BHP Group said its board approved a proposal to scrap the Australian miner’s dual-listed structure, ahead of a shareholder vote next month to decide on the matter.
6) Coal and coal finance
Global coal use to hit record high despite climate fight
Global coal-fired power generation is expected to rise 9% and hit an all-time high by the end of 2021, despite efforts to slash carbon emissions, the International Energy Agency said.
‘Captured’ by coal: NSW government overturns decision to block mine expansion
Decision to reject Dendrobium plans – proposed by BHP spin-off South32 – has been reversed despite potential damage to drinking water
‘Make India’s Hasdeo forests a ‘no go’ zone for coal mines’, says prominent state minister
A prominent member of the Chhattisgarh government has said he wants the biodiverse Hasdeo forests to be declared a ‘no go’ zone for coal mining, even as the government of which he is a part is pushing for more mines. The call came in response to the leaking of a report by an expert scientific institution in India recommending against expanded coal mining in the area. The report warned that coal mining would further fragment the Hasdeo forests, leading to human-elephant conflict that the state government would struggle to mitigate. Adani is a major developer of coal mines in the Hasdeo forests, which are also home to tribal people who oppose the mining. Adani is also a sponor of London’s SCience Museum.
Human Rights Defender Luis Misael Socarras Ipuana writes to Commissioners Reynders and Breton
The indigenous Wayùu people of Colombia have a deep spiritual and cultural connection to their landscape. Wayùu communities in La Guajira depend on their environment, including the Arroyo Bruno River, for the survival of their communities. But their livelihoods and the deep relation they have with their environment was abruptly threatened when the Cerrejón open-pit coal mine started its activities.
Colombia election paints mixed outlook for coal exports
Colombian pro-market presidential candidates are pledging more attractive conditions for the coal industry, but the frontrunner for the country’s 2022 election threatens to scrap coal production. Leftist presidential candidate Gustavo Petro, the favourite in a field of 43 candidates, said one of his first decisions after winning would be to leave Colombia’s coal resources unexploited.
Analysis of HSBC’s Coal Policy
After an extensive period of consultation and engagement between HSBC, ShareAction and the institutional co-filing group, HSBC published its long-awaited coal policy. This briefing provides an analysis of HSBC’s coal policy. HSBC’s new coal policy is an important step forward from the bank’s previous coal policy, which lagged behind those of its European peers. However, as this briefing demonstrates, it still includes important loopholes. We urge the bank to close them during its 2022 coal policy review.
BlackRock’s $1.2 billion investments in Adani coal and gas projects are accelerating global warming
Backing one of the largest investors in new coal projects tars CEO Larry Fink’s climate vision.
7) Uranium: it won’t help the climate, and suffers a setback in Spain
We don’t have time to wait for the emissions-reduction nuclear power could bring
The industry has a long and troubled history of delays and cost overruns
Spain rejects Berkeley Energia’s uranium plant
Berkeley Energia, the London-listed Australian company that has been trying for years to build Europe’s only open-cast uranium mine, was notified that its request to build a uranium concentrate plant at Retortillo had been denied by Spain’s Ministry for Ecological Transition.
8) Europe, renewables and the ‘green’ economy
Europe’s green deal needs to get round anti-mining roadblock
Protesters took to the streets in Serbia again on Saturday. It was the third consecutive weekend of marches and road blockades against the government’s push to develop its mining sector. Opposition groups have coalesced around one project in particular – Rio Tinto’s proposed lithium mine in the Jadar Valley.
Europe is no ‘green mining’ haven
Experts at a special hearing warned the EU that its green rhetoric about its mining boom is dangerous and misleading.
YLNM members, allies, experts intervene at EU special hearing on mining impacts
On the 2nd December 2021, YLNM members and allies gave critical testimony at the European Parliament’s Petitions and Environment committees’ special hearing on environmental and social impacts of mining activity in the EU.
9) UK mining companies in Peru
UK registered companies lead the official list of new project investment in mining
UK registered firms top the list with investments totalling US$11.58 billion. Of these by far the most significant is Anglo American’s Quellaveco (US$5.3 billion) and Rio Tinto’s La Granja (US$5 billion). However, Rio Tinto has repeatedly postponed a decision on whether to develop La Granja. In 2019, it considered entering into a partnership with Canada’s First Quantum Minerals.
‘No deal here’: Peru communities, Hochschild on collision path over mine closures
London-listed Hochschild Mining is on a collision path with Peruvian communities near its Inmaculada and Pallancata mines, with the firm adamant it will not shut the pits and local residents determined that it will not be granted operation extensions.
10) Colombian farmers take on David vs. Goliath fight against ‘exploitative’ gold mining
Almost five years ago, small-scale farmers in Colombia won a remarkable victory in the fight to protect their land and territories. They voted en masse against international mining company AngloGold Ashanti’s plans to mine gold in the mountainous Andes district of Cajamarca. This David vs. Goliath action was to protect an environmentally unique area, stop mining developments in the territory and inspire a surge of activism to defend land from predatory economic interests. But the people of Cajamarca are now once again under threat.
11) Mining damage in Brazil
Brazil: Christian Aid praises police for bringing criminal charges against mining company over Brumadinho dam disaster
Christian Aid has welcomed reports that Brazil’s Federal Police is bringing criminal charges against Vale for environmental crimes for its role in the Brumadinho dam disaster and has called for urgent “justice and compensation.”
Amazon mining threatens dozens of uncontacted Indigenous groups, study shows
Mining interests in the Brazilian Amazon pose an imminent threat to Indigenous groups, a new study shows, causing “incalculable damage” for 43 isolated groups if a bill legalizing mining on Indigenous land is approved.
12) Will Barrick Gold CEO Go Beyond Rhetoric to Deliver Justice for Victims of Police Killings at Tanzanian Mine?
The company’s just-released human rights report doesn’t even mention a UK court case on behalf of victims of killings and injuries inflicted by security forces at the North Mara mine.
13) Exploitation of workers in DR Congo taints electric vehicles
New research reveals dire conditions, discrimination and extremely low pay at some of the world’s largest industrial cobalt mines operated by multinational mining companies in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
14) Activists derail Euro Sun’s plans for the Rovina mine
NGO, and local opposition groups, have announced the environmental safeguarding of lands within ESM’s proposed Rovina Valley footprint. A Canadian gold miner’s hopes of establishing Romania’s first open-pit copper and gold mine are now in peril – due to strict Romanian property ownership laws. ESM had hoped to list on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) later this year.
15) EU: Business & human rights experts & leaders issue joint statement to President von der Leyen & EU Commission on delay to Sustainable Corporate Governance initiative
The EU’s legislative proposal for a Sustainable Corporate Governance initiative, including mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence for EU businesses across their global value chains, and improved corporate accountability, was again expected this month – and was again delayed.
16) Guide: protecting your community from the extractive industries
A how-to guide for resisting mining and extractivism anywhere and everywhere.
17) Beyond Extractivism with the YLNM Network
A series of seminars held and organised by the Yes to Life, No to Mining Network in 2021, exploring new research and activism to help take us beyond extractivism.
18) COP26 resources from Yes to Life No to Mining
Here we share video recordings of mining and climate-related events at the People’s Summit on Climate Justice, which runs parallel to COP26 in November 2021.
19) IMF & other international standard setters examining government accounting for mineral wealth: Goa Foundation
Since 2016, the Goa Foundation & The Future We Need have advocated the correction of a crucial anomaly in the way governments account for the oil, gas & mineral wealth they control and dispose of through miners. In Goa and across the world, mineral sale proceeds (e.g., royalty) are incorrectly treated as revenue and spent as part of the budget. The extraction, however, is actually leading to depletion of the mineral wealth, cheating future generations of access when their turn arises, as the minerals are finite in quantity and are not renewable. Further, the mineral wealth is being sold for less than its actual worth
20) Deep Sea Mining – what could it do to the ocean?
New ten-minute Video from Deep Sea Mining Campaign
21) Momentum for change: UK public joins business and civil society to demand new Business, Human Rights and Environment law
The call for the UK Government to table a new UK law to root out corporate supply chain abuses – wherever they take place – is rapidly building.
22) Turning the Tide – A Bankwatch Documentary
How the climate movement is helping sever the romance between multilateral development banks and the fossil fuels industry.
23) Due diligence in the UK is coming down to the devilish details
Two years in the making, the UK’s Environment Bill finally received Royal Assent in November 2021, during COP26, and became the Environment Act – meaning it is officially a law (FW 269). Even at this significant milestone, however, much remains to be decided.