Pat Downey - July 02, 2009
Rio Tinto Minerals
Mining and Sustainable Development
Good afternoon Im Pat Downey and I run the Montana Operations for Rio Tinto Minerals near Ennis and Three Forks. Proudly, we are the largest talc mining operation in the United States.
Today, I want to talk about sustainable development at first glance, sustainable development may seem like an odd concept for a mining company we basically take minerals out of the ground and dont put them back
But we do contribute to sustainable development through responsible business practices including:
Providing good jobs and a safe working environment for employees
Partnering with our neighbors to address issues that affect our communities
Minimizing our environmental footprint and maximizing how our talc products contribute to a cleaner, greener world; and,
Creating value for our customers, shareholders, employees and local economies
So lets start with safety, which is our most important value as a company
The foundation of our safety program which was recognized last year when we received the Montana Governors Safety Award is our people
We start every meeting and every shift talking about safety
and we hold everyone accountable for identifying and addressing the risks associated with every part of every job we do, and we look out for one another.
Our commitment to safety doesnt end at the gate we also try to influence our families and communities; in fact, we held a safety fair last year and invited a motivational speaker in to share our best practices with our neighbors
The next part of our social commitment to sustainable development is our support for the local communities
We recently surveyed community leaders surrounding our operations as well as our employees to find out what they all think are the most important issues we face
Based on what we learned, we direct our contributions of time, money and in-kind services to programs that make our communities safer and healthier, that support education, and that protect the environment
Two of the programs that are nearest to my heart are our support for the Museum of the Rockies, and their work to make science interesting to kids. As well as our support of the Teachers Minerals Education Workshop, where the teachers come for the continuing education credits and they leave with a better sense of the importance of minerals and mining for our society.
This is a little bit selfish as well I want the next generation of scientists to come and work for me at our operations, and I also want to be able to rely on their knowledge to reduce environmental impacts
Another important part of our commitment to sustainable development is how we treat the environment
First of all, the environment is the source of our livelihood and its why we love living in Montana so this is a commitment our entire workforce shares
We work to reduce the water and energy we use to make our talc products, and to lower our own greenhouse gas emissions
We have successfully lowered our GHG emissions by 25 percent or more in different parts of the operations by making major investments in better equipment
We are also proud of our products contribution to the environment most people think of talc as only baby powder, but its so much more and is used in thousands of other products you use every day
For example, the talc we mine here in Montana is used to make the plastics, catalytic converters, diesel filters and tires that, in turn, make cars and trucks lighter, more fuel efficient and reduce emissions
it may surprise you to learn that the average car contains more than 8 pounds of talc
Our talc is also used to make construction materials like paint and decking longer-lasting and more environmentally friendly
Finally, almost all the paper you use every day contains talc paper manufacturers use it in the paper itself, as well as the process where it helps them increase their use of recycled paper
Making products that are the building blocks of a good standard of living is part of economic contribution, but we also contribute more directly by
Providing good jobs here in Montana for more than 70 years
We rely on local businesses for goods and services whenever possible, such as our relationship with A.M. Welles of Norris, MT who have been hauling talc form our mine for five decades.
Our customers depend on the purity and quality of our talc to differentiate their own products in the marketplace
And finally, we are part of a global talc business that has been profitable for shareholders for more than a century
I hope that gives you some idea of how we look at and live up to our commitment to sustainable development we welcome your questions and comments
Please visit us on the web at www.riotintominerals.com
Or give me a call at 406 285 5307 to schedule a tour of our mining and processing operations
In the meantime, thank you for listening and thank you for making safety your top priority as we enter the Fourth of July weekend.
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