The growing importance of Corporate Social Responsibility

Vancouver – Wednesday morning the Mineral Exploration Roundup in Vancouver turned to the growing importance of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the business.

A common thread among the speakers was that not only are the practices around CSR “the right thing to do”, they are also becoming increasingly necessary in ensuring the success of a project.

Joe Ringwald, a director of Belmont Resources (BEA-V) and former vp of project development for Brett Resources , emphasized the need for exploration companies, and the industry as a whole, to adopt existing guidelines or face further regulations down the road.

He pointed to a recent study on CSR by John Ruggie that concluded that “the most common gap is the failure to enforce existing laws.”

“Change, or be changed,” stated Ringwald, as he emphasized the growing reach of regulators abroad. He pointed to the teeth in United States anti-bribery legislation and prosecution as a clear example of increased efforts to crack down in illicit practices, with roughly a billion dollars issued in penalties in 2010. Canada, said Ringwald, is starting to catch up.

“[Bill] C-300 is just the beginning,” said Ringwald, arguing that while ‘flawed in verbiage’, the bill that would have seen greater oversight of the Canadian mining industry abroad was ‘sound in principle’, adding that the bill is definitely not dead.

“You want to do the right thing because you want your project to go forward,” said Ringwald. “If you do the right thing, you add value.”

Bill Mercer, vp of exploration at Avalon Rare Metals (AVL-T), explained how Avalon’s use of proper practices have helped it do just that, advancing its Thor Lake project faster and smoother.

“If you do these things right, you lower your risk,” said Mercer.

Avalon has made strides in local employment and investment and was active early on in establishing communications with local stakeholders.

That need for both early communications with stakeholders, and a respect for their interests, was also emphasized by Emmie Fairclough, senior manager lands, resources and heritage department at the Ta’an Kwach’an Council in the Yukon.

“Community functions on relationships…it takes more than just money,” said Fairclough, adding that “respect is essential.”

She told how she was impressed when a mineral exploration company actually worked with the council on flight routes into its project to avoid disturbing the council’s traditional hunting grounds.

Rounding out the discussion, Marketa Evans, the Government of Canada’s CSR counsellor, and Bernarda Elizalde, program director for sustainable development at the prospectors and developers association, spoke of the reporting and assessment practices that their organizations are establishing.

The afternoon saw the Roundup turn to some of the exiting discoveries being made in Canada with a technical session on Canadian exploration highlights.