Management for Sustainability: an Analysis of the Key Practices

Ecological Indicators 52 (2015) 116–127

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Ecological Indicators

jo urnal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ecolind

Management for sustainability: An analysis of the key practices

according to the business size

a a,∗ b

Clandia Mafﬁni Gomes , Jordana Marques Kneipp , Isak Kruglianskas ,

a a

Luciana Aparecida Barbieri da Rosa , Roberto Schoproni Bichueti

Santa Maria Federal University, Cidade Universitária, Av. Roraima, 1000, Prédio 74C, sala 4303, Santa Maria, RS Zip Code 97105-900, Brazil

São Paulo University, School of Economics, Business and Accounting, Luciano Gualberto 908, São Paulo, SP Zip Code 05508, Brazil

r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: The mining sector has many challenges with regard to the incorporation of sustainability in the strategies

Received 8 March 2014

and operations of the industry, given its extractive nature and the numerous social and environmental

Received in revised form 11 August 2014

impacts related to this productive activity. Therefore, this study aims to analyze the relationship between

Accepted 13 November 2014

the management practices for sustainability and business performance, according to the size of companies

in the Brazilian mining sector. The study of descriptive and quantitative nature was conducted through a

Keywords:

survey with companies associated with the Brazilian Mining Association (IBRAM). The main results show

Management for sustainability

that larger companies indicate higher levels of adoption of management practices for sustainability and

Performance

Size business performance. The correlation analysis also allowed us to verify that the number of associations

between the management practices for sustainability and business performance is higher in larger com-

Mining sector

panies. Thus, the central hypothesis proposed that the adoption of management practices for sustainability

and business performance differs according to the size of companies in the mining sector, was corroborated,

as we found signiﬁcant differences in the behavior of companies, according to their size, with regard to

the management practices for sustainability and business performance.

1. Introduction The challenge of a management that integrates economic, social

and environmental aspects in a consolidated and strategic man-

The management for sustainability has as its premise the incor- ner is increasingly more common in the business environment and

poration of aspects relating to the sustainable development in the highlights the organization’s concern about the future, represent-

strategy and operations of organizations, representing an emerging ing a long-term investment.

challenge for companies. Lacy et al. (2010) point out that manage- Society and stakeholders have been increasingly valuing com-

ment practices and sustainable products are opening new markets panies that adopt an engaged position with the principles of

and sources of demand, bringing the need for new business mod- sustainable development and requiring transparency about the

els and sources of innovation, which alter the cost structure of the corporate behavior.

industry, so that sustainability permeates from corporate strategy The mining sector has many challenges with regard to the incor-

to the set of operations of the company. poration of sustainability in the strategies and operations of the

In addition, Aligleri et al. (2009) emphasize that a company industry, given its extractive nature and the numerous social and

committed to the future and to sustainability is the one that has environmental impacts related to this productive activity.

a business model that evaluates the consequences and impacts of A corporate social responsibility agenda for the mining sector

its actions and contemplates social and environmental aspects in stems from the growing need of companies in the industry to jus-

its ﬁnancial vision. tify their existence and demonstrate their performance through

the disclosure of their social and environmental actions (Jenkins

and Yakovleva, 2006). Since the mining sector is essential to

a number of other industries and due to its extractive nature,

∗

Corresponding author. Tel.: +55 55 32209242; fax: +55 55 32209242.

a sustainability-oriented management that aims at minimizing

E-mail addresses: [email protected] (C.M. Gomes),

the social and environmental impacts related to this produc-

[email protected] (J.M. Kneipp), [email protected]

tive activity becomes a primary factor for their survival and

(I. Kruglianskas), [email protected] (L.A.B.d. Rosa), [email protected] (R.S. Bichueti). competitiveness.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2014.11.012

C.M. Gomes et al. / Ecological Indicators 52 (2015) 116–127 117

Tonelli et al. (2013), defend the need for a new industrial system protecting the environment and improving the lives of people with

in the future that would be less homogenous with different busi- whom it interacts.”

ness models and different relationships, creating different products Based on the concept of sustainable organization, the chal-

and services – requiring new strategies, frameworks, and tools. lenge consists in combining economic welfare, social equity and

Sustainable business models incorporate a triple bottom line environmental protection based on long-term actions. The integra-

approach and consider a wide range of interests of stakeholders, tion between the economic, social and environmental dimensions

including the environment and society, are important elements in results in a new productive paradigm, from the perspective of sus-

the conduct and implementation of innovation for sustainability, tainable development, emphasizing the sustainability of processes

contributing to the incorporation of sustainability purposes and and products, allowing a better quality of life to people from their

business processes, and serve as a key factor in achieving compet- environment (Daroit and Nascimento, 2004).

itive advantage (Bocken et al., 2014). The dimensions of sustainability are intrinsic in the concept of

It can be seen that several studies have sought to associate size to sustainable company and are represented from the Triple Bottom

entrepreneurial behavior (Collins et al., 2007, Corner, 2001, Greve, Line, which became known in the business environment after the

2008). Some studies suggest that the business size has a signiﬁcant publication of the book Cannibals with Forks: The Triple Bottom Line

effect on the degree of proactivity when it comes to the adoption of 21st-Century Business in 1997.

of sustainable practices, where large organizations are more likely The three dimensions of sustainability, commonly referred to

to adopt proactive environmental practices (Aragón-Correa, 1998; as the triple bottom line, should be integrated in a way that, in

Buysse and Verbeke, 2003). the environmental sphere, natural resources are used so as not to

Therefore, given the economic representativeness of the Brazil- harm future generations, reducing the impacts from the action of

ian mining industry, the challenges related to the adoption of industries. In the economic perspective, it is necessary to preserve

management for sustainability, and the effect of the business size in the company’s proﬁtability rather than compromising its economic

relation to the degree of proactivity regarding the adoption of sus- development. And ﬁnally, in the social sphere, which includes the

tainable practices, this study seeks to understand: how the adoption issue of social justice, the ultimate goal is the development of a

of management practices for sustainability and business performance fairer world through relationships with all stakeholders (Elkington,

differs according to the size of companies in the Brazilian mining 2001).

sector? To answer this question, this study aims to analyze the The premise of the management for sustainability based on

adoption of management practices for sustainability, the business the economic, social and environmental dimensions is to enable

performance and the relationship with the size of companies in the gains for the company, society and environment. Aligleri (2011, p.

Brazilian mining sector. 24) deﬁnes sustainable management as “a business approach that

This study is structured in four sections, in addition to this intro- considers the pattern of organization of ecosystems in the decision-

duction. Section one corresponds to the bibliographic references making processes and management practices covering assessment

and section two covers the methodological procedures of the study. indicators in the economic, environmental and social dimensions.”

Subsequently, the analysis and discussion of results and the ﬁnal According to Barbieri and Cajazeira (2009), sustainable man-

remarks of the study are presented. agement is regulated by a few instruments that facilitate and

contribute to the integration of sustainability into business strategy

in order to guide the implementation and maintenance of manage-

2. Impacts from the management for sustainability ment systems, programs and activities, as well how to ensure a

transparent communication with stakeholders and compatibility

The discussion about sustainable development in the business between the management systems.

context represents a relatively new issue, introduced in the 80s, According to Holton et al. (2010), the management for sus-

and that has been changing the relationship between the company tainability is deemed critical for the development of corporate

and the environment. The analysis of the thinking of ecologists and sustainability, being essentially related to change and organiza-

economists, in relation to the subject, leads to the understanding tional development strategy. In this sense, Dunphy et al. (2003)

that conventional economic theories cannot guide the future, since emphasize that the management for sustainability is related to the

they never considered the impact of natural capital. Industries have strategic organizational development, change in the management

beneﬁted historically from natural capital, destroying it, and the structure, systems and skills and the availability of a growing num-

current industrial system is based on archaic accounting principles ber of tools and guidance documents, aiming to help companies

(Park, 2008). implement management for sustainability.

In the last ten years, the world’s industrial production has Next, we will address aspects related to sustainability in the

increased more than 100-fold and the expected is that the global mining industry, in order to discuss the speciﬁcs features that affect

industrial system is to double its output using 50% of current the mining sector in the adoption of a sustainable management.

resources and generating 20% of current CO2. Thus, the industrial

system will be central to the world economy through the com- 2.1. Management practices for sustainability in the mining

ing century, and this will only be feasible through a very different industry

Industrial sustainability ‘low-carbon, resource-efﬁcient’ approach

(Tonelli et al., 2013). In the mining industry, the incorporation of management

Barbieri et al. (2010) state that companies have joined the practices for sustainability seeks to minimize the environmental

sustainable development movement initially due to external impacts related to this productive activity. According to Hilson

pressures, in response to the criticisms and objections from gov- and Murck (2000), sustainable development in the mining sec-

ernmental entities and the organized civil society that blamed tor requires a commitment to the continuous environmental and

companies for the processes of social and environmental degra- socioeconomic improvement at the stages of exploration, operation

dation that affected the planet, and it recently represents a factor and completion of activities. In addition to the legal instruments,

of business competitiveness and may be a source of differentiation there are also market inducing mechanisms that have favorably

or qualiﬁcation to remain on the market. contributed for large mining companies to assume a greater com-

According to Savitz and Weber (2007, p. 2), a “sustainable commitment to sustainable development, such as: shares of mining

pany is the one that generates proﬁt for its shareholders, while companies on stock exchanges, voluntary and communication such

118 C.M. Gomes et al. / Ecological Indicators 52 (2015) 116–127

Sustainable Development Principles 1. Implement and maintain ethical business practices and upright corporate governance practices . 2. Integrate sustainable development to the corporate decision-making process. 3. Defend the basic human rights and respect the culture, customs and values of employees and stakeholders. 4. Implement risk management strategies based on valid data and sound science. 5. Seek the continuous improvement of our operation in the health and safety areas. 6. Seek the continuous improvement of our operation in the environmental area. 7. Contribute to the conservation of biodiversity and the approaches integrated to the planning of land use. 8. Facilitate and encourage the development, use, reuse, recycling and disposal of products in a responsible manner. 9. Contribute to the social, economic and institutional development of the surrounding communities. 10. Implement effective and transparent agreements with stakeholders for the commitment, communication and

independent verification of information.

Fig. 1. Ten principles for sustainable development.

Source: ICMM (2008).

as the adhesion to environmental programs and certiﬁcations advanced voluntary initiatives in its category, in order to contribute

(Enríquez and Drummond, 2007; Enríquez, 2009). to improve the performance of the mining industry (ICMM, 2010).

For Viana (2007), the consolidation of an environmental policy The 10 principles were elaborated based on other global guid-

is essential for the adoption of international standards, such as the ing standards such as the 1992 Rio Declaration, the global reporting

International Organizations for Standardization Series – ISO 14001, initiative, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Develop-

which involves guidelines for the environmental management sys- ment (OECD) guidelines for multinationals, the operating policies of

tem, assessment and certiﬁcation of environmental quality and the World Bank, the convention of OECD on combating corruption,

criteria for assessing the quality and effectiveness of the relation- the conventions of the International Labor Organization (ILO) 98,

ships between the company and environment. 169, 176 and the voluntary principles on safety and human rights

The environmental concern of companies in the mining sector (ICMM, 2008). Fig. 1 presents the ten principles established by the

involves not only the preservation of an ecosystem and the assur- ICMM.

ance of community safety, but it also considers human welfare and The 10 principles for sustainability of ICMM (2008) represent

the rights of local inhabitants, the quality of life of the current and a consolidated international standard that covers a wide range of

future generations. The sustainable development principles in the aspects for the promotion of sustainable development in the mining

mining sector require economic growth and environmental preser- industry. In order to verify the applicability of the principles to the

vation from the beginning of a project, including the evaluation of Brazilian reality, the sustainable development framework will be

moral and ethical values, considering the subjective values of the used in this study as a basis for the investigation of the management

community, rather than just emphasizing the traditional economic practices for sustainability in companies in the Brazilian mining

value (Amade and Lima, 2009). sector.

Considering the peculiarities of the sector and the importance

of its involvement and commitment to sustainability, the move- 2.2. Business performance and sustainability indicators

ments toward sustainable development in the mining industry are

expressive. These movements are intended for the mining sector Companies have understood that for competing in continuously

to obtain its social license to operate based on the integration of changing environments, it is necessary to monitor and understand

sustainability into their strategies. According to Azapagic (2004), it ﬁrm performances. The academic research has sought to identifying

is important to highlight some important international initiatives logics and drivers allowing enterprises to be effectively managed

involving sustainable development in the mining industry, such through the measurement of their performances and are investi-

as the United states sustainable minerals roundtable, the Canadian gating how companies can achieve objectives they plan to achieve

minerals and metals initiative and the European industrial minerals through the measurement of their performances (Taticchi et al.,

association. Another important initiative is the creation of the Inter- 2010).

national Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), a forum based in Performance indicators seek to assess the results achieved by

London, founded in October 2001 to represent leading international organizations based on the strategies established so as to enable

mining and metal companies, aiming to improve the performance the preparation of new plans or proposals for improvement. Indica-

of companies in the sector (ICMM, 2010). tors consist of one or more variables that, when associated through

To achieve its goal, the ICMM develops partnerships with var- various forms, reveal broader meanings of the phenomena to which

ious institutions such as Nongovernmental Organizations (NGOs), they refer, enabling the monitoring of the company’s interests and

international organizations and universities. Through these part- enabling the planning of actions aimed at performance improve-

nerships, the ICMM operates on several issues, such as climate ments (Villas Bôas, 2011; Callado, 2010).

change, health and community safety, the impact of mining on There are several proposals of indicators to measure sustaina-

biodiversity, the rights of indigenous peoples and the social and bility, however, the initiative of the Dutch agency, the Global

environmental impacts of the industry and the future consequences Reporting Initiative (GRI) represents one of the most comprehen-

of the emergence of new global agents. The proposal is to encourage sive and known scopes worldwide. The GRI is an international

mining companies to learn to share good practices (ICMM, 2010). non-governmental organization, founded in 1997, headquartered

In 2003, the ICMM developed the Sustainable Development in the Netherlands, and its mission is to develop and globally dis-

Framework, which consists of a tool for the promotion of sus- seminate guidelines for the development of sustainability reports

tainable development in the mining sector, and aims to ensure by companies worldwide (Instituto Ethos, 2010). The performance

standardization through the adoption and enforcement of policies indicators of sustainability proposed by the GRI are divided into

stipulated by the model. The framework consists of ten princi- the following categories: economic, environmental and social. Each

ples, public reports and independent audit, being among the most category includes information on the management method and a

C.M. Gomes et al. / Ecological Indicators 52 (2015) 116–127 119

corresponding set of core and additional performance indicators. adoption of sustainable policies because they believe that there

Core indicators consider relevant aspects to most organizations, are few individual social and environmental impacts related to

and additional indicators represent emerging practice or address their productive activities (Collins et al., 2007). In addition, Corner

subjects that may be relevant to certain organizations (GRI, 2006). (2001) argues that small companies are less prone to engage in

The mining and metals sector supplement consists of a version voluntary practices because they feel overburdened with the exist-

of the G3 guidelines of the GRI indicators suitable for the mining government regulations. Collins et al. (2007) also consider

ing and metals sector, including speciﬁc comments for the sector that large companies are more strongly engaged with sustaina-

regarding the content of the guidelines and additional performance bility practices, having more recycling programs, policy statements,

indicators, to ensure that sustainability reports effectively cover environmental reports, environmental management systems and

key sectoral issues. The supplement covers all the main activities indicators.

of the industry, such as exploration, processing of primary metals For Taticchi et al. (2010) to the conduct a review the literature in

and minerals, including the manufacture of metals and recycling, the ﬁeld of Performance Measurement and Management (PMM) for

the entire life cycle of the project, from the development, oper- small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and large companies, reveal

ational life to the completion and post-completion of operations. a certain maturity of the literature related to large companies and

To do so, some key issues for the sector are addressed, such as: a signiﬁcant lack of PMM literature for SMEs.

biodiversity/ecosystem services; emissions, efﬂuents and waste; Second the authors in the literature related to large companies

labor, indigenous rights; community; artisanal and small-scale result in fact quite mature, and future research will address to solve

mining; resettlement; closure planning; materials management the difﬁculty of companies in effectively translating information

(GRI, 2010a). coming from the measurement of processes into effective tasks.

The management for sustainability substantially contributes to The SME context is completely different: the literature appears

the development of business performance. The sustainable strate- immature and the models indentiﬁed often fail while implemented

gic management is focused on results related to innovation, in (Taticchi et al., 2010).

addition to economic, social and environmental results for the orga- The size of companies in the mining sector may be related to the

nization and its stakeholders. adoption of management practices for sustainability that minimize

Conﬁrming this view, Eccles et al. (2011) argue that organiza- social and environmental impacts and ensure a greater compet-

tions that voluntarily integrate environmental and social policies in itiveness for the industry. Based on the literature presented, we

their business model represent a fundamentally distinct type of the have drawn up the central hypothesis of this study:

modern corporation, characterized by a governance structure that

H1: The adoption of management practices for sustainability

in addition to ﬁnancial performance, accounts for the environmen-

and business performance differs according to the size of com-

tal and social impact of the company, a long-term approach toward

panies in the mining sector.

maximizing inter-temporal proﬁts, an active stakeholder manage-

ment process, and more developed measurement and reporting In the following section, we present the methodological choices

systems. for the development of the study.

The adoption of management practices for sustainability,

according to the business size, is discussed in the following section.

2.3. The adoption of management practices for sustainability and 3. Research methodology

performance according to the business size

The study of descriptive and quantitative nature was conducted

The business size may be related to the behavior of compa- through a survey applied on companies in the Brazilian mining

nies with regard to the pressures to adopt sustainable practices. sector.

According to Greve (2008), the size of a company affects its business Descriptive survey research is aimed at understanding the rele-

efﬁciency, legitimacy and deﬁnition of its business strategy. vance of a certain phenomenon and describing the distribution of

Lacy et al. (2010), in survey conducted with CEOs from various the phenomenon in a population (Forza, 2002, p.155).

countries, found that managers of large companies are more opti- The conceptual model adopted in this study consists of a set of

mistic about the incorporation of sustainability to business issues. variables related to the management for sustainability and business

Some studies suggest that the business size has a signiﬁcant effect performance, as show in Fig. 2.

on the degree of proactivity in relation to sustainability, where large For the study, the management practices for sustainability were

organizations are more likely to adopt proactive environmental analyzed based on ten principles for sustainable development in

practices (Aragón-Correa, 1998; Buysse and Verbeke, 2003). Like- the mining industry developed by ICMM (2008). The business

wise, Bansal (2005), in a study conducted with Canadian companies performance was evaluated based on the performance indicators

in the oil and gas, mining and forestry sectors, identiﬁed a positive proposed by the global reporting initiative – GRI (2006) grouped

relationship between the corporate sustainable development and into economic, environmental and social categories. In addition,

the business size. the indicators of the mining and metals sector supplement con-

Collins et al. (2007) identiﬁed the internal and external taining speciﬁc indicators for the mining and metals sector (GRI,

pressures that drive companies to adopt sustainable practices and 2010b) were used. Moreover, we also used the indicators that most

the existing differences related to the size. The study revealed that relate to the sector addressed in this study.

large companies are more prone to internal and external pressures For the purposes of classiﬁcation of size, we considered the gross

in the adoption of sustainable practices when compared to smaller operating revenue of companies in 2010 and used the criterion of

companies. Formal institutional factors such as sources of pressure BNDES (2010).

to adopt sustainable policies are characteristic of large companies, For data collection, a structured questionnaire was prepared,

which are also more susceptible to pressure from shareholders, with a scale of interval assessment in which respondents indi-

investors, employees, government regulation and brand reputa- cate the degree (score) that best reﬂects their agreement with

tion. respect to the actions adopted by the company, ranging between

On the other hand, the authors argue that small companies 0.1 (lowest agreement) and 1 (maximum agreement). Appendix

are more likely to perceive fewer barriers with regard to the A shows a summary of variables and indicators related to

120 C.M. Gomes et al. / Ecological Indicators 52 (2015) 116–127

Fig. 2. Conceptual model of the quantitative research.

Source: prepared based on ICMM (2008), GRI (2006, 2010b).

management for sustainability practices and to corporate perfor- 4. Analysis and discussion of results

mance.

The questionnaire was validated by experts in the ﬁelds of inno- In order to analyze the existing differences in relation to the

vation and sustainability. This step aimed to evaluate the suitability adoption of management practices for sustainability when consid-

of the instrument for data collection with regard to clarity, format, ering the business size, the companies surveyed were categorized

content and the scales used. into two groups: larger and smaller companies. Subsequently, we

Based on the experts’ suggestions, the questionnaire was conducted the analysis of variables on each group of companies,

improved and, as a result, the pre-test was conducted to verify its aiming to verify the differences and similarities in both types of

suitability with three companies in the mining sector in Rio Grande companies.

do Sul (RS). After making the adjustments suggested by the com- The criterion used in the creation of the groups was based on the

panies in the pre-test phase, we proceeded to the beginning of data gross operating revenues of the companies in 2010, according to the

collection. classiﬁcation of BNDES. By adopting this criterion, the companies

The target population of the study consisted of 260 companies were divided into two groups, as can be seen in Table 1.

associated with the Brazilian Mining Institute (IBRAM), Brazilian The companies are characterized according to the period of

Association of Ferroalloy and Silicon Metal Producers (ABRAFE), establishment, main product, location, number of employees and

Brazilian Association of Producers of Agricultural Limestone (ABRA- gross operating revenue in 2010. Fig. 3 summarizes the proﬁle of

CAL), Industry Association of Sand Mining of the state of São Paulo the companies considering the size.

(SINDIAREIA) and Industry Association of Coal Mining of the State The average period of establishment of the companies analyzed

of Santa Catarina (SIESC). is approximately 37 years, with the larger companies being older

The questionnaire was sent by email to the companies selected and the smaller companies younger. The smaller companies stud-

and data were collected from October 2011 to November 2012. ied, mainly located in the states of São Paulo, Rio Grande do Sul

We have contacted all companies selected for the study, and and Minas Gerais, have as main products mineral aggregates, lime-

the sample consisted of the companies that effectively received, stone and dolomite, from 20 to 99 employees and gross operating

answered and returned the questionnaires duly completed. We revenue ranging from R$ 2.4 million to R$ 16 million.

received 51 questionnaires back, representing 19.61% of the popu- Larger companies, mainly located in the states of Minas Gerais,

lation studied. Although the rate of return is not considered high, São Paulo, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul, have as main

the results obtained enable the speciﬁc analysis of the charac- products coal, iron, mineral aggregates and limestone, above 500

teristics and behaviors of the companies studied, although the employees and gross operating revenue above R$ 16 million.

evidence found cannot be extrapolated to the universe of research Thus, it can be seen that smaller and larger companies have

considered. some aspects in common such as products and location, differing

The ﬁgures were tabulated and analyzed with the assistance mainly in regard to the period of existence, number of employees

of Microsoft Excel software and Statistical Package for the Social and gross operating revenue. Given the representativeness of the

Sciences – SPSS by means of univariate and bivariate analysis. mining sector in the industrial activity and in the Brazilian economy

After the completion of the Kolmogorov–Smirnov (KS) non- and the environmental impacts associated with mining, the sample

parametric test of adherence to normality, we found the of companies analyzed may be considered appropriate to analyze

non-compliance with the assumption of normality of data, which the behavior of the sector in relation to the management practices

led to the adoption of non-parametric statistics. for sustainability and business size. Table 2 shows the results of the

Finally, in order to check the presence of differences in the aver- descriptive analysis of the management practices for sustainability.

age ﬁgures in the behavior of companies with regard to the business The comparison of the ﬁgures obtained in Table 2, in relation

size, we used the nonparametric test of Mann–Whitney, an alterna- to the business size, allows us to observe that, in general, larger

tive to the t test for two independent samples. This test is preferable companies indicate higher means in relation to the adoption of

in relation to the t test when there is a violation of normality,

allowing the veriﬁcation of the behavior between two case groups

Table 1

(Pestana and Gageiro, 2008). Size of the company according to the gross operating revenue (GOR) in 2010.

Similarly, in order to check the existence of a relationship

Size GOR Frequency %

between the variables related to the management practices for

Smaller size Up to R$16 million 23 45.1

sustainability with the business size, we calculated the Spear-

Larger size Above R$16 million 28 54.9

man’s correlation coefﬁcient. Below we present the results of the study. Total 51 100

C.M. Gomes et al. / Ecological Indicators 52 (2015) 116–127 121

Table 2

Descriptive analysis of the adoption of management practices for sustainability. Mann-

Smaller size Larger size Whitne

Dimen sion Variables

y test Mean σ Mean σ Sig.

Ethical business Ethical policies and business practices 0.85 0.29 0.93 0.13 0.23

practices and Engagement with stakeholders 0.74 0.33 0.81 0.33 0.19 upright corporate Overall mean 0.79 0.24 0.87 0.20 governance systems. Integration of the principles of sustainable development into 0.68 0.30 0.86 0.18 0.02** policies and practices Sustainable development as a priority in the project,

Integration of 0.66 0.37 0.77 0.31 0.28

sustainable operation and comp letion of mines

development into Innovation s to improve the social, environmental and

0.73 0.26 0.80 0.27 0.13

the corporate economic performance

decis ion-making Incentives to stakeholders for the adoption of practices and

0.67 0.34 0.80 0.26 0.26

process principles based on sustainability Training of employees for su stainable development 0.67 0.34 0.76 0.28 0.41 Overall mean 0.68 0.25 0.80 0.19

Management Engagement with stakeholders for the management of social

0.80 0.21 0.82 0.26 0.41

strategies for and envir onmental impacts environmental and Effective response procedures in emergency situations 0.75 0.24 0.82 0.27 0.12

safety risks Overall mean 0.78 0.21 0.82 0.26

0.01**

Effective and Disclosu re of performance to stakeholders 0.46 0.35 0.69 0.32

tran sparent

0.00**

ag reements with Engagement with stakeholders 0.61 0.37 0.89 0.20

stakehold ers

Overall mean 0.53 0.34 0.79 0.23

Remuneration of all employees fairly and adequate working

Protection of 0.89 0.16 0.93 0.11 0.52

fundamental human conditions

rights and respe ct to No use of forced, compulsory or child labor 0.95 0.21 1.00 0.02 0.21

the cult ures, Respect to the culture and heritage of local communities

0.82 0.35 0.89 0.29 0.27

customs and values and indigenous peop les

of stakeholders Overall mean 0.89 0.15 0.94 0.12

Systems for ongoing interaction with stakeholders and

Social, economic 0.60 0.33 0.75 0.31 0.07*

part ies affected

and insti tutional

0.01** development of the Development of the su rrounding community 0.53 0.36 0.74 0.38

communit ies

Overall mean 0.57 0.33 0.74 0.31

Search for Continuou s improvement of aspects that may cause a

0.87 0.22 0.97 0.07 0.03**

conti nuous significant impact on the health and safety of employees

improvement in Continuou s improvement of aspects that may cause a

0.80 0.27 0.94 0.12 0.02**

healt h and safety significant impact on the health and safety of communities areas. Overall mean 0.83 0.20 0.95 0.09

0.01**

Global a nd periodic assessment of environmental impacts 0.69 0.34 0.89 0.23

Envir onmental management system to manage

0.80 0.22 0.89 0.21 0.05**

Search for envir onmental impacts

conti nuous

0.00**

improvement in the Envir onmental certifications such as ISO 14001/SA 8000 0.18 0.38 0.69 0.40

envir onmental area

R ecovery of the company’s areas of operation 0.83 0.29 0.83 0.29 0.30 0.87 0.23 0.92 0.24 0.05**

Overall mean 0.67 0.21 0.84 0.20

Conservati on of Development and implementation of practices for 0.40 0.83 0.19 0.83 0.29 biodiversity and biodiversity conservation and land use planning

land use planning Overall mean 0.83 0.19 0.83 0.29

In tegrated management of materials throughout the mining

0.77 0.27 0.82 0.31 0.19

Development, use, chain

reuse, recycling and Development, use, reuse, recycling and disposal of products

0.78 0.27 0.88 0.25 0.07*

disposal of products and materials responsibly

responsi bly

Overall mean 0.77 0.26 0.85 0.22

The average ﬁgures refer to the level of agreement of the companies on the implementation of such practices on a scale ranging from 0.1

to 1, where 1 is the highest level of agreement.

The average ﬁgures of each dimension were calculated from the arithmetic mean of its variables.

Level of signiﬁcance between means: ***p < 0.01; **p < 0.05; *p < 0.10.

122 C.M. Gomes et al. / Ecological Indicators 52 (2015) 116–127

Va riable Smaller Size Larger Size

Period of existence On average 28 years On average 45 years

Ma in product Mineral aggregates, Limestone and Coal, Iron, Mineral Aggregates and

Dolomite. Limestone.

State São Paulo, Rio Grande do Sul and Minas Gerais, São Paulo, Santa

Minas Gerais. Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul

Number of employees 20 to 99 employees Over 500 employees

Gro ss Operating Above R$ 2.4 million to R$ 16 million Above R$ 16 million to R$ 90 million

Revenue in 2010

Fig. 3. Dimensions and variables of the study.

management practices for sustainability when compared to smaller aspects: integration with the principles of sustainable development

companies. These results conﬁrm the ﬁndings of studies that sug- into policies and practices; disclosure of performance to stake-

gest that business size has a signiﬁcant effect on their propensity holders; engagement with stakeholders; permanent interaction

to adopt sustainable practices (Aragón-Correa, 1998; Bansal, 2005; systems with stakeholders and affected parties; development of

Buysse and Verbeke, 2003). the surrounding community; continuous improvement of aspects

For smaller companies, the highest means refer to the fol- that may impact signiﬁcant the health and safety of employees;

lowing indicators: non-use of forced, compulsory or child labor continuous improvement of aspects that may have a signiﬁcant

and remuneration of all employees fairly and adequate working impact on the health and safety of communities; global and periodic

conditions. The lowest means shown in Table 2 refer to assessment of environmental impacts; environmental manage-

environmental certiﬁcations and disclosure of performance to ment system to manage environmental impacts; environmental

stakeholders. certiﬁcations such as ISO 14001/SA 8000; storage and disposal of

With regard to larger companies, the highest means refer to the waste and tailings safely; development, use, reuse, recycling and

following indicators: non-use of forced, compulsory or child labor disposal of products and materials responsibly.

and the continuous improvement of aspects that may have a sig- The data are consistent with the vision of Collins et al. (2007),

niﬁcant impact on the health and safety of employees. The lowest by revealing that large companies are more prone to internal and

means shown in Table 2 refer to the disclosure of performance to external pressures in the adoption of sustainable practices when

stakeholders and environmental certiﬁcations. compared to smaller companies.

Thus, we can see that the main management practices for The results show that larger companies, for having a better

sustainability of smaller companies are related to legal aspects structure, may invest more in practices that seek the continuous

involving employees, that is, there is a greater emphasis with improvement in social and environmental issues, as well as in envi-

respect to the social and internal dimension of sustainability, ronmental certiﬁcations and in the environmental management

demonstrating a reactive posture. This result conﬁrms the thought system.

of Corner (2001) that small companies are less likely to engage Table 3 shows the results of the descriptive analysis of business

in voluntary practices because they feel overburdened with the performance.

existing government regulations. Based on the results shown in Table 3, it is possible to conclude

In larger companies, in addition to the concern about legal that, in general, larger companies indicate higher means in rela-

issues, it was also possible to see a greater emphasis on the contin- tion to business performance indicators when compared to smaller

uous improvement of the health and safety of employees. However, companies.

there is still a predominance of social practices related to employ- The highest means observed for both groups of companies refer

ees. to the reduction of the rates of injury, occupational diseases, lost

It is worth mentioning that the practices of lower intensity are days, absenteeism and work-related deaths and the development

common to both segments, consisting of the disclosure of per- of occupational health and safety programs. The positive percep-

formance to stakeholders and environmental certiﬁcations. This tion related to these indicators can mean an increased adequacy of

aspect shows that obtaining environmental certiﬁcations and the companies in terms of labor legislation, but also reveals a high level

disclosure of performance to stakeholders is still incipient among of commitment to the adoption of practices to promote the health

the companies analyzed, which indicates a reactive posture of and safety of workers.

organizations in the search for regulatory instruments aiming to The indicators termed as promotion of resettlement and reha-

facilitate the implementation of a management for sustainability. bilitation of resettled individuals and reduction of conﬂicts related

According to Barbieri and Cajazeira (2009), regulatory instruments, to land use are among the aspects evaluated with the lowest mean

such as social and environmental certiﬁcations, are intended to between smaller and larger companies. The indicators assessed are

promote speciﬁc procedural guidelines in the implementation and from the model adopted by the mining and metals sector supple-

maintenance of management systems, programs and activities, ment, which covers speciﬁc indicators for the mining sector (GRI,

facilitating the measurement of results. 2010b). Thus, the low intensity obtained in these indicators may

In order to evaluate possible differences regarding the adoption indicate that these conditions may not entirely apply to the reality

of management practices for sustainability according to the busi- of the companies studied.

ness size, the nonparametric test of Mann–Whitney was used and In order to check for differences in mean values with regard

the results are shown in Table 2. to business performance when considering the size, we used the

Comparing the adoption of management practices for sus- non-parametric test of Mann–Whitney, as shown in Table 3.

tainability according to the business size, the Mann–Whitney test Comparing the business performance in the economic,

appeared to be signiﬁcant for 12 of 26 variables analyzed. Thus, social and environmental dimensions, according to the size,

based on the test results it can be concluded that larger compa- the Mann–Whitney test appeared to be signiﬁcant for 22 of the

nies have a higher level of adoption of management practices for thirty one variables analyzed. Thus, we can conclude that larger

sustainability than smaller companies, with regard to the following companies have a higher business performance regarding the

C.M. Gomes et al. / Ecological Indicators 52 (2015) 116–127 123

Table 3

Descriptive analysis of business performance.

Mann-

Small er size Larger size Whitney Dimen sion Variables test

Mean σσ Mean Sig.

Incr ease of the generated and distributed direct economic value 0.51 0.35 0.72 0.31 0.02** Increased presence of policies, practices and proportion of expenses 0.45 0.34 0.67 0.32 0.01*** with local suppliers. Higher proportion of senior management hired from the local

Economic 0.33 0.35 0.59 0.31 0.01***

community.

Investmen ts in infrastructure and services offered especially for 0.33 0.33 0.69 0.33 0.00*** public benefit Overall mean 0.39 0.29 0.67 0.26 Increased use of materials derived from recycling. 0.44 0.41 0.66 0.30 0.04**

Reduction of direct and indirect energy consumption 0.55 0.36 0.72 0.29 0.06* Redu ction of water consumption 0.53 0.41 0.74 0.30 0.06*

Increase in the percentage of land rehabilitation 0.65 0.36 0.74 0.35 0.18

Redu ctions in emissions of greenhouse gases, effluents and waste 0.48 0.37 0.80 0.25 0.00*** Reduction of the total values of overload, rocks, tailings, and sludge

Environme 0.55 0.36 0.77 0.29 0.01*** and associated risks.

ntal

Initiatives to reduce environmental impacts of products and services 0.73 0.29 0.83 0.24 0.13

Incr ease in the percentage of recovered products and packaging in

0.31 0.36 0.50 0.40 0.05**

relation to total goods sold

Redu ction of environmental impacts related to the transportation of

0.60 0.37 0.73 0.31 0.13

produ cts, materials and workers. Overall mean 0.52 0.29 0.73 0.20

Reduction of the rate of employee turnover 0.75 0.29 0.80 0.19 0.82

Redu ction of rates of injury, occupational diseases, lost days,

0.80 0.28 0.93 0.10 0.24

absenteeism and work-related deaths

Occup ational health and safety programs 0.80 0.26 0.91 0.21 0.12

Investment in training 0.69 0.26 0.89 0.15 0.00***

Incr ease in the percentage of suppliers and contractors submitted to

0.41 0.37 0.70 0.32 0.00***

assessmen ts relating to human rights

Development of mea sures aimed at reducing cases of discrimination 0.55 0.38 0.77 0.34 0.03**

M easures to abolish child labor and/or slavery 0.63 0.46 0.79 0.39 0.28

Redu ction of operations conducted within or near indigenous

0.25 0.41 0.31 0.44 0.67

territories

Programs and practices to reduce the impact of operations on

0.38 0.36 0.84 0.31 0.00***

Social commun ities

Redu ction of conflicts related to land use 0.24 0.36 0.46 0.46 0.06*

Promotion of resettlement and rehabilitation of resett led individuals 0.13 0.27 0.29 0.40 0.28

Incr ease of the percentage of operations with closure plans 0.24 0.36 0.52 0.43 0.02**

Investment in an ti-corruption mechanisms. 0.25 0.36 0.58 0.45 0.01***

Redu ction of significant fines and non-monetary sanctions resulting

0.55 0.44 0.74 0.39 0.08*

from the noncomplian ce with laws and regulations

Redu ction of impacts on the health and safety of customers from the

0.40 0.39 0.67 0.43 0.01***

assessment of the life cycle of prod ucts and services

Adequ acy to labeling requirements for products and services 0.36 0.40 0.67 0.41 0.01***

Programs relating to the management of materials aiming at

0.52 0.37 0.75 0.31 0.02**

su stainability.

Incr ease of stakeholder involvement 0.54 0.37 0.77 0.26 0.02**

Overall mean 0.47 0.18 0.69 0.19

The average ﬁgures refer to the level of agreement of the companies on the implementation of such practices on a scale ranging from 0.1 to 1,

where 1 is the highest level of agreement.

The average ﬁgures of each dimension were calculated from the arithmetic mean of its variables.

Level of signiﬁcance between means: ***p < 0.01; **p < 0.05; *p < 0.10.

following indicators: increase of the generated and distributed submitted to assessments relating to human rights; development

direct economic value; increased presence of policies, practices and of measures to reduce discrimination; programs and practices to

proportion of expenses with local suppliers; higher proportion of reduce the impact of operations on communities; reduction of

senior management hired from the local community; investments conﬂicts related to land use; increased percentage of operations

in infrastructure and services offered especially for public beneﬁt; with closure plans; investment in anti-corruption mechanisms;

increased use of materials derived from recycling; reduction of reduction of ﬁnes and non-monetary sanctions resulting from the

direct and indirect energy consumption; reduction of water con- noncompliance with laws and regulations; reduction of impacts on

sumption; reductions in emissions of greenhouse gases, efﬂuents the health and safety of customers from the assessment of the life

and waste; reduction of the total values of overload, rocks, tailings, cycle of products and services; adequacy to labeling requirements

and sludge and associated risks; increased percentage of recovered for products and services; programs relating to the management

products and packaging in relation to total goods sold; investment of materials aiming at sustainability; increase of stakeholder

in training; increased percentage of suppliers and contractors involvement.

124 C.M. Gomes et al. / Ecological Indicators 52 (2015) 116–127

Table 4

Management practices for sustainability and business performance, according to the size (Smaller size).

P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 P6 P7 P8 P9 P10 D1 D2 D3

Management practices for sustainability P1 **

P2 0.01

P3 0.13 0.01

P4 0.21 0.00 0.07

P5 0.08 0.02 0.22 0.14

* ** ** *

P6 0.01 0.00 0.26 0.01 0.02

* ** *

P7 0.02 0.23 0.13 0.46 0.00 0.02

* ** * *

P8 0.66 0.01 0.12 0.00 0.07 0.02 0.03

** *

P9 0.32 0.16 0.08 0.75 0.21 0.23 0.00 0.03

* * * * ** *

P10 0.04 0.02 0.07 0.02 0.07 0.06 0.03 0.00 0.02

* ** *

Business performance D1 0.10 0.01 0.22 0.00 0.21 0.02 0.71 0.85 0.79 0.65

** * ** * * * **

D2 0.27 0.00 0.02 0.00 0.67 0.04 0.76 0.01 0.19 0.02 0.00

* * ** **

D3 0.04 0.06 0.24 0.01 0.70 0.07 0.43 0.38 0.35 0.26 0.00 0.00

P1, Ethical business practices and upright corporate governance systems; P2, Integration of sustainable development into the corporate decision-making process; P3,

Management strategies for environmental and safety risks; P4, Effective and transparent agreements with stakeholders; P5, Protection of fundamental human rights and

respect to the cultures, customs and values of stakeholders; P6, Social, economic and institutional development of the communities; P7, Search for continuous improvement

in health and safety areas; P8, Search for continuous improvement in the environmental area; P9, Conservation of biodiversity and land use planning; P10, Development,

use, reuse, recycling and disposal of products responsibly. D1, Economic performance; D2, Environmental performance; D3, Social performance.

Signiﬁcant positive correlation, where p = 0.05.

Signiﬁcant positive correlation, where p = 0.01.

•

From the foregoing, it is possible to conclude that approximately Ethical business practices and upright corporate governance sys-

70% of the analyzed indicators show signiﬁcant differences when tems with social performance;

•

considering the business size, showing that larger companies indi- Integration of sustainable development into the corporate

cate higher business performance than smaller companies. The decision-making process with economic and environmental per-

ﬁgures conﬁrm the study of Greve (2008), by stating that the size of formance;

•

a company affects its business efﬁciency, legitimacy and deﬁnition Management strategies for environmental and safety risks with

of its business strategy. economic and environmental performance;

•

Tables 4 and 5 show data relating to the relationship between Effective and transparent agreements with stakeholders in eco-

the adoption of management practices for sustainability and busi- nomic, social and environmental performance;

•

ness performance of smaller and larger companies, respectively. Protection of fundamental human rights and respect to the

With respect to smaller companies, there are 11 signiﬁcant asso- cultures, customs and values of stakeholders with economic per-

ciations (at 0.01** and 0.05*) involving the thirteen variables related formance;

•

to management practices for sustainability and business perfor- Social, economic and institutional development of the communi-

mance. ties with economic, environmental and social performance;

•

Based on the correlation analysis performed, it is possible to say Search for continuous improvement in the health and safety areas

that the variables that are associated with business performance with economic performance;

•

are: Conservation of biodiversity and land use planning with environ-

mental performance;

•

Development, use, reuse, recycling and disposal of products

•

Ethical business practices and upright corporate governance sys- responsibly with environmental and social performance.

tems with social performance;

•

Integration of sustainable development into the corporate

decision-making process with economic and environmental per-

formance; Table 6 shows a comparative analysis of the correlations

•

Management strategies for environmental and safety risks with between the management practices for sustainability and business

environmental performance; performance, considering smaller and larger companies.

•

Effective and transparent agreements with stakeholders in eco- In the comparison between the two segments of companies, the

nomic, social and environmental performance; number of signiﬁcant associations between the adoption of man-

•

Social, economic and institutional development of the communi- agement practices for sustainability and business performance is

ties with economic and environmental performance; 16 in larger companies and 11 in smaller companies.

•

Continuous search for improvement in the environmental area In addition, in smaller companies, it is possible to verify that

with environmental performance; only the practice of effective and transparent agreements with

•

Development, use, reuse, recycling and disposal of products stakeholders is related to the three dimensions of business perfor-

responsibly with environmental performance. mance (economic, social and environmental) and the management

practices for sustainability are predominantly associated with

environmental performance, as six signiﬁcant associations were

Table 5 shows the results for larger companies. observed.

With respect to larger companies, there are 16 signiﬁcant associ- At the same time, it appears that in larger companies, the prac-

ations (at 0.01** and 0.05*) involving the thirteen variables related tices effective and transparent agreements with stakeholders and

to management practices for sustainability and business perfor- social, economic and institutional development of the communities

mance. are associated with the three performance dimensions. Yet, it was

Based on the correlation analysis performed, it is possible to say possible to note that the practices are associated mainly with eco-

that the variables that are associated with business performance nomic performance, considering that seven signiﬁcant associations

are: were found.

C.M. Gomes et al. / Ecological Indicators 52 (2015) 116–127 125

Table 5

Management practices for sustainability and business performance, according to the size (Larger size).

P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 P6 P7 P8 P9 P10 D1 D2 D3

Management practices P1

for sustainability P2 0.00

P3 0.06 0.00

** **

P4 0.06 0.01 0.01 * ** ** *

P5 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.02

* **

P6 0.22 0.02 0.08 0.00 0.08 ** ** ** ** ** **

P7 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01

** * ** ** ** *

P8 0.01 0.02 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.07 0.05

** ** ** * * *

P9 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.02 0.03 0.13 0.07 0.04

* * ** ** * ** ** **

P10 0.04 0.04 0.01 0.01 0.04 0.00 0.00 0.07 0.00

* * * ** * * *

Business performance D1 0.04 0.01 0.05 0.00 0.02 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.10 0.14

* * ** * * * **

D2 0.24 0.01 0.01 0.00 0.23 0.01 0.06 0.46 0.03 0.05 0.00

** ** * * *

D3 0.71 0.09 0.67 0.01 0.20 0.00 0.13 0.39 0.25 0.03 0.05 0.01

See legend of Table 4.

Signiﬁcant positive correlation, where p = 0.05.

Signiﬁcant positive correlation, where p = 0.01.

Table 6

Comparison of correlations between the management practices for sustainability and business performance, according to the size (smaller and larger companies).

Management practices for sustainability business performance Smaller companies Larger companies

Ethical business practices and upright corporate governance systems × ×

Integration of sustainable development into the corporate decision-making process × ×

Management strategies for environmental and safety risks × ×

Effective and transparent agreements with stakeholders × ×

Protection of fundamental human rights and respect to the cultures, customs and values of stakeholders ×

Social, economic and institutional development of the communities × ×

Search for continuous improvement in the health and safety areas ×

Continuous search for improvement in the environmental area ×

Conservation of biodiversity and land use planning ×

Development, use, reuse, recycling and disposal of products responsibly × ×

It was also possible to note that among larger companies only related to management practices for sustainability and business

one of the practices is not related to any of the business perfor- performance.

mance dimensions, however, among smaller companies there are The central hypothesis that guided the completion of this study,

three variables that have no association with business performance. that the adoption of management practices for sustainability and

Based on the results achieved, it is possible to conﬁrm the business performance differs according to the size of compa-

hypothesis that the adoption of management practices for sus- nies in the mining sector, was corroborated given that signiﬁcant

tainability and business performance differs according to the size differences were found between the mean values regarding the

of companies in the mining sector. management practices for sustainability and performance when

considering the size of the companies.

The main limitation of the study was the number of compa-

5. Final considerations

nies surveyed. Thus, the evidence found cannot be extrapolated

to the universe of research considered, being restricted only to

The main purpose of this study was to analyze the adoption

the set of companies participating in the sample. Notwithstanding

of management practices for sustainability and business perfor-

the limitations presented, the study allowed the identiﬁcation of

mance, according to the size of companies in the Brazilian mining

some evidence regarding the behavior of companies in the Brazilian

sector. The results showed that, in general, larger companies indi-

mining sector with respect to the management for sustainability,

cate higher means in relation to the adoption of management

performance and business size, thus identifying important ele-

practices for sustainability and business performance, when com-

ments for the development of this area of expertise, taking into

pared to smaller companies.

consideration that a management for sustainability that aims to

The result of the Mann–Whitney test shows that larger compa-

minimize social and environmental impacts arising from the min-

nies indicate higher levels of adoption in twelve of the management

ing activity represents a matter of survival for companies in the

practices for sustainability analyzed. With regard to business per-

sector.

formance, the test also appears to be signiﬁcant to approximately

Therefore, the study provided evidence indicating that the

70% of the indicators analyzed.

corporate size is an important factor with regard to the man-

The correlation analysis also allowed us to note that the number

agement for sustainability in the mining sector, given that

of associations between management practices for sustainability

larger companies seem to be more strongly engaged with the

and business performance is higher in larger companies.

adoption of sustainable practices when compared to smaller

At the same time, when comparing larger and smaller compa-

companies.

nies, it was found that they differ in relation to several variables

126 C.M. Gomes et al. / Ecological Indicators 52 (2015) 116–127

Variables and indicators to practices of management for

sustainability and to corporate performance.

Variables Indicators

Independent variables management practices for sustainability

Ethical business practices and governance systems -Ethical business practices and policies;

-Engagement with stakeholders in order to contribute to sustainable development.

Integrate sustainable development within the corporate -Integrate sustainable development principles into company policies and practices;

decision-making process. -Sustainable innovations;

-Encourage stakeholders to adopt sustainable practices;

-Provide sustainable development training to employees.

Environmental and safety risk management strategies Engagement of interested parties in environmental and social impacts;

-Develop effective emergency response procedures.

Implement effective and transparent engagement with -Report performance to stakeholders;

stakeholders. -Commitment with interested parties.

Uphold fundamental human rights and respect -Ensure fair remuneration and work conditions;

stakeholders -Do not use forced, compulsory or child labor;

-Respect local communities.

Community development -Systems for ongoing interaction with affected parties;

-Host community development and collaboration.

Seek continual improvement of health and safety -Continuous improvement of operations that can have a signiﬁcant impact on the

performance. health and safety of all employees and local communities.

Seek continual improvement of environmental -Global and periodic assessment of environmental impacts;

performance -Environmental management system;

-Environmental certiﬁcations;

-Rehabilitate land disturbed by operations;

-Storage and disposal of residual wastes and residues.

Conservation of biodiversity and land use planning. -Development and implementation of procedures that contribute to the conservation

of biodiversity and land use planning

Responsible recycling and disposal of products -Integrated materials management;

-Responsible management of products and materials.

Dependent variables – corporate performance

Economic performance

Economic performance -Increase in direct economic value generated and distributed.

Market presence -Larger presence of policies, practices, and proportion of spending on locally-based

suppliers;

-Larger proportion of senior management hired from the local community.

Indirect economic impacts -Development and impact of infrastructure investments and services provided.

Environmental performance

Materials -Increased usage of recycled materials.

Energy -Direct and indirect energy consumption reduction

Water -Water use reduction

Biodiversity -Increase in the percentage of land for production activities and/or extractive use that

have undergone rehabilitation.

Emissions, efﬂuents and waste -Initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, efﬂuents and wastes;

-Reduction of overburden, waste rock, tailings and sludge and their associated risks.

Products and services -Initiative to reduce environmental impacts;

-Increase in the percentage of products and packaging recovery compared to total

sales.

Transportation -Reduction of environmental impacts related to transportation.

Social performance

Employment -Reduction of employee turnover.

Health and safety at work -Reduced rates of injury, occupational diseases, lost days, absenteeism and

work-related deaths;

-Health and safety at work programs.

Training and education -Investment in employee training and development.

Investment and purchasing process best practices -Increase in the percentage of contractors and suppliers submitted to screening on

human rights.

Non-discrimination -Development of policies to reduce discrimination.

Child/slave labor -Policies designed to eliminate child and/or slave labor.

Indigenous rights -Reduction of operations in or near the territories of indigenous peoples.

Community -Deployment of programs and practices to reduce the impacts of operations;

-Reduction of conﬂicts related to land use.

Resettlement -Initiatives to promote the resettlement and rehabilitation of resettled people.

Closure planning -Increase of the percentage of operations with closure plans.

Corruption -Investment in anti-corruption mechanisms.

Compliance -Reduction of signiﬁcant ﬁnes and non-monetary sanctions resulting from

noncompliance with laws and regulations.

Customer health and safety -Reduction of the impact on the health and safety of customers.

Services and product labeling -Adequacy of information regarding the requirements of procedures for services and

product labeling.

Handling of materials -Adequacy of programs and progresses related to materials management.

Stakeholders -Increased participation of stakeholders

Source: based on ICMM (2008) and GRI (2006, 2010b).

C.M. Gomes et al. / Ecological Indicators 52 (2015) 116–127 127

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