Vale raises water reuse to 76%

Enviromine

Publishing Date: 01 Sep 2009 4:59pm GMT
Author: Mining Environmental Management

Sustainability

Brazilian-based Vale SA said this month that is has increased its water reuse and recycling to 76% this year, making it a leader in employing sustainable water resources.

The company made the announcement in the release of its 2008 sustainability report earlier this month.

It said it had increase the level of water reuse from 65% in 2007 to a total of 1030Mm³.

The company also said it was paying close attention to climate change issues and was working to reduce its CO₂ emissions.

Vales total CO₂ emissions were 16.8Mt CO₂ equivalent in 2008, 10% higher that in 2007, mainly due to the inclusion of the company’s Australian units.

The company said it had launched a number of initiatives to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions including switching from fuel oil to natural gas at Minas Gerais and capturing methane at its underground operations in New South Wales to generate electricity.

This year the company signed an agreement with Biophlma da Amazônia SA to produce biodiesel from palm oil for use on its Carajas railway in Brazil starting in 2014.