Gold Fields is committed to responsible environmental stewardship. The conservative use of water and energy resources by our mines is not only critical for them to remain effective, but also to limit the impact of our usage on the surrounding communities and environment. To facilitate this, Gold Fields strictly adheres to all local legislation and regulations, and is guided by a number of leading external standards. We have developed several Group environment-related policies – relating to environmental stewardship, climate change, materials and supply chain stewardship, water stewardship and tailings management – as well as a range of related guidelines.

Water is a key focus area of our environmental strategy. Not only is it becoming an increasingly scarce and expensive resource globally, but we also draw water from the same catchment areas as our local communities. In countries like Peru and Chile, for example, water management has become a key source of friction and conflict between mines and their host communities.

A reliable and cost-efficient supply of energy is equally critical to our operations. Apart from labour, energy is the biggest operational cost at our mines. It is therefore critical that we use energy efficiently, as it is also a significant contributor to our carbon footprint in the form of Scope 1 and 2 emissions. The negative physical impacts of climate change are real and immediate, due to:

• The long-term risks posed to our operations and surrounding communities because of extreme weather events, such as severe rainfalls and prolonged droughts
• Increasing efforts to regulate carbon emissions in most of our jurisdictions
• Taxes on non-renewable energy consumption increasingly being imposed by governments

As such, Gold Fields' climate change programme specifically focuses on energy management programmes to reduce emissions and energy costs, including the use of renewable energies and increasing the reuse and recycling of water. We integrate assessment of climate-related risks and opportunities in project studies, as well as operational and strategic planning.

CO₂ INTENSITY

ENVIRONMENTAL INCIDENTS