Aboriginal group to issue scorecard assessing Western Australian miners

The Wintawari Guruma Aboriginal Corp. plans to issue a scorecard to grade the environmental, social and governance performance of mining companies in Western Australia's Pilbara region, Reuters reported March 10.

The scorecard will focus on five areas: heritage surveys, regulatory compliance, environmental responsibility, relationships with native title holders, and reporting on environmental, social and governance issues, according to the newswire.

The assessment will consider a one-year period using 34 questions, and the group will publish its results and provide feedback to miners, Reuters said.

The group said it aims to educate investors and the public following the destruction of an Aboriginal heritage site in 2020 by London-based diversified mining major Rio Tinto. In May 2020, it was revealed that the company had destroyed a 46,000-year-old sacred site in the Juukan Gorge area during an expansion of an iron ore operation.

Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. are the biggest mining companies in the Eastern Guruma region represented by the Aboriginal group, and they welcomed the plan.

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