Current Participants:
Mining Companies
- Anglo American
- Newmont
Non-Governmental Organizations
- Canadian Boreal Initiative
- Center for Science in Public Participation (CSP2)
- EARTHWORKS
- Great Basin Resource Watch
- Mining Watch Canada
- Oxfam America
- Oxfam Australia
Impacted Communities
- Western Shoshone Defense Project
Retailers/ “Downstream Users”
- Tiffany & Co.
- Jewelers of America
Labor
- United Steelworkers
- IndustriALL
Individual Participants
A number of additional consultants and experts also participate in IRMA.
High Commitment, High Value
IRMA is committed to a high-commitment high-value approach as we believe that high commitment generates the greatest environmental, social, and economic value.
Specific commitments remain to be identified and agreed between all IRMA participants, but areas for consideration for businesses include such actions as:
- Implementing a strategy of broad and timely uptake of the IRMA standard across a company’s portfolio of mine sites;
- High level commitments by companies trading, processing, manufacturing and/or retailing mine products to give preferential treatment to the products from certified mine sites;
- Public and business-to-business endorsement of the IRMA standard and the IRMA system;
- Active promotion and use of the IRMA brand as a credible indicator of responsible mining and mine products
For civil society organizations and individuals commitment can indicated by such actions as:
- High profile, public endorsement of the IRMA standard and the IRMA system;
- Public support for mine sites that implement the IRMA standard;
- Active promotion and use of the IRMA brand as a credible indicator of responsible mining and mine products
- Designing campaigns against the negative impacts of mining in ways that distinguish between ‘responsible’ mining which meets the IRMA standard, and mining which does not meet the IRMA standard.
Benefits and Value
As described, the IRMA system, once in operation, will generate value for both business users and civil society supporters. Many of the benefits of IRMA will apply to all stakeholders, other benefits may accrue only to a subset of sectors.
For mining companies, uptake of the IRMA system will provide some or all of the following benefits:
- Improved local community and government relations;
- Improved reputation for companies throughout the value chain, built on substance;
- Faster, more easily achieved and less contentious license approvals leading to quicker project development;
- Reduced risk of being targeted for negative campaigns at site and/or company levels;
- Improved labor relations;
- Increased demand for products resulting in improved market access, price premia, or other market value;
- Easier or more cost effective access to finance.
For the downstream users of mining products, uptake of the IRMA system will provide some or all of the following benefits:
- Reduction of supply chain risk;
- Increased demand for products made from responsibly-mined metals (product differentiation);
- Improved reputations for retail or other businesses purchasing metals.
Uptake of the IRMA system by businesses will in turn generate value for IRMA’s civil society supporters, in line with their own organizational missions, including:
- Protection of affected community health, values, and culture;
- Respect for the rights of indigenous peoples, affected communities, employees and other relevant stakeholders;
- Improved worker health and safety;
- Increased dialogue and better relations with mining companies;
- Protection of land, water, air and areas of high conservation value;
- Accountability for legacy issues.
