The Global Mining and Metals Water Dataset Report:
The International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) released its Global Mining and Metals Water Dataset, revealing that nearly two-thirds of global mining and metals processing facilities face high physical water risk.
- The Global Mining and Metals Water Dataset report represents the first comprehensive, cross-commodity analysis evaluating the mining sector’s exposure to physical water risks worldwide.
- Developed by ICMM in collaboration with research partners, the report overlays point-location data from 12,000 mining and metals facilities across 148 countries/regions with primary water risk datasets.
Key Findings in the Report:
- Most Common Threat (BaselineWater Stress): 38% of all facilities operate in catchments experiencing high/extremely high water stress or arid conditions. Over 70% of these stressed facilities are also exposed to high baseline water depletion (27% of global facilities).
- Extreme Drought Concentrations: 27% of global sites face high drought risk. In Africa and the Middle East, this exposure reaches 81%. In countries like Zambia, Ghana, and Uzbekistan, 100% of mining facilities face high drought risk, while South Africa stands at 96%.
- Elevated Flood Risk in Refining: While global flood exposure sits at 14%, specific processing stages face far higher hazards—notably steel production (27%), alumina refining (27%), molybdenum (25%), and aluminium smelting (24%).
- Interannual Unpredictability in Oceania: 16% of global facilities experience high year-to-year water supply variability. Oceania exhibits extreme exposure, with 74% of its facilities (and 79% in Australia) subjected to severe supply fluctuations.
- Compound Risk Hotspots (Convergence of 3+ Risks): 5% of global facilities face high risk across three or more physical indicators simultaneously. These compound clusters concentrate in Chile, Peru, the Western United States, southern Africa, northern China, central India, and western Australia.
- Vulnerability ofCritical Energy Transition Minerals: Key clean energy transition commodities face above-average risk profiles.
- Example: Platinum Group Elements (74% drought risk), Manganese (21% compound exposure), and Copper (9% compound exposure) operate in highly vulnerable catchments.
- Chile’s Dual Pressure: Chile—the world’s top copper producer and a major lithium supplier—sees 86% of its facilities facing high baseline water stress and high interannual variability concurrently.
