Key challenges

Indigenous peoples

We respect the traditional rights and cultural heritage of indigenous peoples in every location in which we are active. We are committed to open communication with indigenous communities to ensure our operations consider and address cultural heritage issues and concerns. We also involve local indigenous people in the identification and assessment of areas of cultural value on our sites.

At Mount Isa in north Queensland, Xstrata Copper works with indigenous organisations to find opportunities to improve the employment rate of Aboriginal people on and off site. Indigenous communities are encouraged to participate economically in our operations through training, employment and sustainable business ventures. Around 95 indigenous employees work at the Mount Isa operations in a wide range of occupations from truck drivers to training advisers; metallurgical plant workers through to management. We also encourage indigenous employment through the annual undergraduate work experience employment programme and apprenticeship scheme which offer vocational work experience and training.

The McArthur River zinc-lead mine in the Northern Territory runs an award-winning training programme which has helped indigenous people learn new skills and go on to enter the full-time workforce. The mine also has an innovative commercial partnership with local indigenous groups to barge concentrate from the port to ships anchored offshore.

In Peru, we are working closely with the indigenous communities living near the Las Bambas copper project to identify, prioritise and implement sustainable development projects (see the case study). We run training programmes to assist indigenous people develop the skills to secure employment within the project and externally at our operations. Through our established relationships, we have an understanding of local decision-making processes and we have established a code of conduct for our employees and contractors to ensure they understand and respect the culture of the local communities.

In terms of cultural heritage management, we involve indigenous communities and other experts in the identification and assessment of areas of cultural value on our sites. In Australia, cultural heritage management processes in place include:

• assessing new mining areas for cultural significance prior to disturbance, in conjunction with the traditional owners;
• consulting with the relevant indigenous representatives and government agencies regarding the management of these areas;
• developing and implementing cultural heritage management plans;
• preserving areas of particular importance and significance, such as the rock art at Ulan or the scarred tree at Rolleston;
• providing access to areas for cultural purposes, such as the Voluntary Conservation area at Beltana;
• supporting research into cultural heritage management; and
• undertaking cultural awareness training of our employees.