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Xstrata commited to health of Mount Isa community and employees (PDF)
Mount Isa, 11 April 2008
Xstrata’s Mount Isa Mines today restated its commitment to the health of the residents of Mount Isa, including its employees and their families.
Chief Operating Officer Xstrata Copper North Queensland, Steve de Kruijff, said the company takes the issue of lead management in the community very seriously.
“We are working closely with key community stakeholders, especially the Mount Isa City Council and the Queensland State Government, to manage lead levels in Mount Isa.
“Naturally we are very concerned to hear about individual cases of high lead levels in local children, however it is not appropriate for us to comment on specific cases which are being managed through Queensland Health.
“We are also not aware of any legal action pertaining to individuals who have elevated blood lead levels.
“It is important for us to obtain the full results and analysis of the Queensland Health testing program of 400 children aged 1-4 years which concluded last December. Queensland Health expects this report to be released within the next six weeks.
“The full report will identify the priorities Queensland Health, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Mount Isa City Council, Xstrata Mount Isa Mines and other community stakeholders need to act on in order to sustainably manage lead levels in Mount Isa.
“The reality is that lead is literally part of the foundations of our community and we all have a responsibility to ensure we manage our exposure to this naturally occurring mineral in our homes, gardens, workplaces and environment.
“Xstrata is committed to environmental management and improving its environmental performance in Mount Isa. We have comprehensive community monitoring through 15 monitoring stations operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
“We’ve already substantially improved our environmental performance including reducing emissions from our Mount Isa operations since 2000. We are also conducting more detailed studies into air, land and water emissions through the University of Queensland’s Centre for Mined Land Rehabilitation (CMLR), by world renowned toxicologist Associate Professor, Barry Noller.
“The recent results reported by Xstrata’s Mount Isa Mines in the National Pollutant Inventory (NPI) database are only estimations of emissions generated on site, and they do not relate to exposure in the community.
“Information about our environmental performance is provided to our employees and the Mount Isa community regularly through our publications and community briefings.
“We have also recently formed the Living with Lead Alliance to promote living with lead in Mount Isa and to ensure community health is maintained. The members of the Alliance include myself, the State MP for Mount Isa, Betty Kiernan, Mayor of Mount Isa City Council, Cr. John Malony, and representatives from Queensland Health and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
“We’re doing this because our number one priority is to make sure our operations are environmentally sustainable and that Mount Isa continues to be a safe place to live,” he said.
ends
Xstrata Contacts
Melanie Edgar
Manager Community Relations NQ
Telephone +61 7 4744 2832
Mobile +61 7 423 820 701
Email medgar@xstratacopper.com.au
Sue Sara
General Manager Corporate Affairs Queensland
Telephone +61 7 3295 7535
Mobile +61 7 411 206 090
Email suesara@xstrata.com.au
Jemma Schweikert
Community Relations Advisor
Telephone +61 7 4744 6552
Mobile +61 7 412 126 510
Email jschweikert@xstratazinc.com.au
ABOUT XSTRATA PLC
Xstrata is a global diversified mining group, listed on the London and Swiss Stock Exchanges, with its headquarters in Zug, Switzerland. Xstrata’s businesses maintain a meaningful position in seven major international commodity markets: copper, coking coal, thermal coal, ferrochrome, nickel, vanadium and zinc, with additional exposures to platinum group metals, gold, cobalt, lead and silver, recycling facilities and a suite of global technology products, many of which are industry leaders. The Group's operations and projects span 18 countries: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Germany, New Caledonia, Norway, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, South Africa, Spain, Tanzania, the USA and the UK. Xstrata employs approximately 56,000 people, including contractors.
ABOUT XSTRATA COPPER
Headquartered in Brisbane, Xstrata Copper is one of the commodity business units within the major global diversified mining group Xstrata plc. Its operations and projects span eight countries: Australia, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Canada, the USA, the Philippines and Papua New Guinea. Its operations are administered by five separate divisions, based close to the mining operations, namely the North Queensland, Minera Alumbrera, North Chile, Southern Peru and Canada divisions. It also has a recycling business (Xstrata Recycling) with plants in the United States and offices in Canada and Asia.
Xstrata Copper is the fourth largest global copper producer with annual attributable production capacity of over one million tonnes.
ABOUT XSTRATA ZINC
Headquartered in Madrid, Spain, Xstrata Zinc is one of the world’s largest producers of zinc and one of the commodity business units within the major global diversified mining group Xstrata plc. Xstrata’s zinc and lead operations and exploration projects are located in Australia, Canada, Germany, Peru, Spain and the United Kingdom.
Xstrata Zinc’s operations in Spain comprise the San Juan de Nieva zinc smelter and the Arnao zinc semis plant in Asturias, and the Hinojedo roasting plant in Cantabria.
In Australia, operations comprise the Mount Isa, George Fisher underground and Black Star open cut zinc lead mines, zinc lead concentrator, lead smelter and Bowen Coke Works in north Queensland; 75% of the Lady Loretta zinc lead deposit in north-west Queensland; the McArthur River open pit zinc lead mine, processing and port operations in the Northern Territory; and 50% of the Lennard Shelf underground zinc lead mine and processing operations in Western Australia.
In Canada, operations and exploration projects include the Brunswick zinc-lead mine and lead smelter in New Brunswick; 25% of the CEZ zinc smelter near Montreal; and the Perseverance zinc deposit in Quebec.
Xstrata Zinc also operates the Nordenham zinc smelter in northern Germany; the Northfleet lead refinery in the United Kingdom; and owns 33.75% of the Antamina mine in Peru.
Around half of all zinc currently consumed is used for galvanizing steel, which is an environmentally friendly method of protecting steel against corrosion. Zinc also finds application in the manufacture of die-cast alloys, brass and the production of zinc oxides and chemicals.