Chapter 13: Spotlight on BHP Billiton’s sustainable development performance

Aims of the exercise

• To gain an overview of BHP Billiton’s global activities and goals.


• To assess the company’s sustainable development policies and practices in light of its goals


• To consider the implications of mining operations generally in terms of their environmental impacts

Getting started
Go to BHP Billiton’s main website at www.bhpbilliton.com. Here there are several main topics in a menu. To find out about the diversity of the company’s activities, click on ‘Our businesses’. Under this heading, click on several of the different activities, to see what they are doing and where. Note especially energy coal, metallurgical coal and stainless steel materials. Go back to the main topics and click on ‘Sustainable development’. Note that the strategy focuses on health, safety, environment and community (HSEC), which is referred to throughout the company’s materials.

There are two elements on this page which we will highlight. The first is ‘2008 at a glance’, under which you will find HSEC targets scorecard. Look at this scorecard. Note in particular the sections on ‘zero harm’ and ‘environment’. The second element on the Sustainable development main page is the 2008 Sustainability Report. Although it would be good to read the whole report, for this exercise, you need only read the summary, which is a downloadable pdf file. In it, there is also a copy of the HSEC scorecard. Under Environmental Responsibility in this report, note the section on page 14 on environmental incidents. Note the targets the company has set for reductions in emissions, together with their performance for 2008.

Tasks

A. Questions

1. On the scorecard under ‘2008 at a glance’, the ‘zero harm’ policy would seem to be a high standard, especially in a huge mining company. The scorecard indicates no serious incidents in 2008, rated at 3 or above. Click on the guide to rating incidents. Now look at the section on environmental incidents on page 14 of the Sustainability Report, where you will find that there were 40 incidents which had the ‘potential to cause significant environmental harm’. How accurate and transparent is the company in its reporting of environmental incidents? Clearly, many incidents had potential for harm, but this is left vague in the ‘at a glance’ section.
2. What are the company’s targets for reductions in emissions of greenhouse gases? Would you consider these targets sufficient to assure the public that it is doing enough to combat climate change?
3. In fact, the company’s emissions went up in 2008. How would you react to this?
4. Look at page 15 of the report, where there is an item on ‘Managing our impact in Indonesia’. Here, the company is developing coal mining in an area ‘world renowned for its biodiversity’. What is the justification for mining here at all? Would you be satisfied that their efforts to co-operate with environmental NGOs and other steps they are taking, make this project appropriate as sustainable development?

B. Reflection

1. In what ways are you favourably impressed by:
   • (i) BHP Billiton’s scorecard?
   • (ii) the company’s performance?
2. In what ways would you criticize their approach to presenting their environmental record?
3. What recommendations would you make to the company in terms of strategy and presentation?

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