This is the first article of a two-part set on leadership and mine water management. The second article explores some takeaways from a quick skim through the latest batch of mining company annual sustainability reports.
Incident/accident reviews are not my most favorite thing to work through. My boss in a previous life (I’ll call him Bill, for the purpose of this article) had a mantra when discussing causation (which fortunately wasn’t that often) – the root cause must always be “lack of leadership”.
Recalling some of the incident and accident reports I have had the opportunity (or misfortune) to review, it seems not everyone would agree with that conclusion. From the amusing to the pathetic would be how I would describe some of the poorer reports, however, taking the positives, I can say the process is beneficial when it brings meaningful change. That change can only happen with strong leadership.
Turning to water and my quest to design the ultimate failsafe approach to mine water risk management, I have to ask….
– how do we ensure leadership is embedded in our water management strategy and system design?
There are multiple opportunities but, from experience, what is clear is that the entire ecosystem and value chain has a responsibility to be a leader. Empowerment as a leader motivates greater commitment, which results in a higher probability of success, less chance for failure.
What is also clear is that the person at the top of the miner tree, the big boss, has the role of empowering leadership. Otherwise, we know what happens – nothing, then failure. Inevitable, but avoidable. And their motivation must come from the Stakeholders – the Board, the investors, the employees, and the community.
Collective leadership, everyone on-board, working towards common goals – bound by Trust.
So here we go….
– how do we build trust in our water management strategy?
Well, we can start with transparency. In 2021, transparency is not an option, it is here and it is now. A sincerity and willingness to share the right information must be present if a mining company is to be considered serious and competent in managing water. Transparency is leadership, which builds trust, which empowers, and so forth.
The opportunities for transparency are numerous and diverse. From publishing on recognized disclosure frameworks (GRI, etc. see blog article ), to open data platforms, or just plain old-fashioned local town hall events. The key here is to be able to demonstrate that those who are key players in managing our precious water resources recognize their role and responsibility and are collaborative in their approach to preserve and conserve.
And a word of warning, now we are in reporting season (or slightly past) disclosure reporting and reports are not synonymous with transparency and do not necessarily build trust. Trust is gained by consistent and trustworthy actions over time. For example, you may have a wonderful looking disclosure report but manage water poorly.
When it comes to water resource management, everyone must be a leader. Without leadership, even the best systems and the best intentions will fail to avert those unwanted, undesirable, unfortunate, and entirely avoidable events. And once again, Bill is right, lack of leadership would probably be the root cause.
In other blog posts I will further discuss opportunities for building trust, managing transparency, and the role of technology as an enabler.
2 thoughts on “Mine water leadership – Part 1: are you ready to walk the talk?”
It seems that now the most important matter in the mining process is the geotechnical reports, even if the mine is full of water. Almost all the time, the ‘big boss’ is worried about the production and the hydrogeological problems are not an issue. Where is the leadership of the team.
Very good article, many things to think.