Date of Award

Spring 2020

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Mining Engineering

Committee Chair

Chris Roos

First Advisor

Thomas Camm

Second Advisor

Kumar Ganesan

Abstract

Industries such as the oil, mining and chemical industry have been under a lot of pressure from governments and certain organizations worldwide to reduce their carbon footprint. The United Nations (UN), the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) and other organizations, have mapped out policies and recommendations that can be used to achieve this. Mining companies all over the world have adopted sustainability commitments based on recommendations by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and have set targets for managing their energy use and GHG emissions. This research assessed the energy management culture of twenty (20) leading mining companies worldwide, using the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 7, Affordable and Clean Energy and 13, Climate Action as a performance metric, and established a trend of adaptation to these sustainability goals. Results showed that the mining industry is so far on an average, committed to achieving 80% of these goals. An investigation into the activities of these mining companies revealed what renewable technologies and energy management structures are currently being used. This research also reviewed how renewable technologies are a product of mining, which goes to prove that mining is essential in the combat of climate change. Future work will focus on assessing the impact of these management goals on the economic model of the companies.

Comments

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MS. Mining Engineering

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