André Henrique Moura Rocci,Damian Joseph Barrett,Daniel M. Franks, Sustainable Minerals Institute / The University of Queensland, Centre for Water in the Minerals Industry, a.rocci@smi.uq.edu.au
ABSTRACT
Globally, freshwater scarcity is increasing and this, coupled with variability in supply, is leading to conflict among different sectors of society having economic, social and environmental consequences. To deal with this dynamic situation, the minerals industry needs new adaptive water management strategies to meet production requirements and contribute to the socio-economic development of communities in environments where water supply and demand fluctuates. The interactions between water availability, water value, policies, regulatory processes, and a growing awareness of cumulative impacts on water quality and quantity drive how water should be allocated among different users. It will place increasing demands on managing future water supply and the ability of tools to forecast future water availability scenarios in regions where mine expansion occurs in the context of other economic and social sectors whose demand for water is increasing. This paper covers the governance, human and environmental dimensions involved with water availability, management and conflicts in both Australian and Brazilian mining regions demonstrating how Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) leads to better Sustainable Development (SD) outcomes for the mining industry.
Keywords: Adaptive Management (AM), Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM), Cumulative Impacts (CI), Sustainable Development (SD), Water Use, Mining.