No. 1. Aaron Regent, president and CEO of Barrick Gold Corp., earned $24.2-million in 2009.STRINGER/CANADA
Barrick is vowing to "step up our game" on social responsibility, amid increasing political concern that mining companies are not doing enough to police their own impact on communities and the environment.
The world's largest gold producer is taking a series of steps to deal with social and environmental issues at its mines. It will set up an external advisory council and appoint an independent director to its board with experience in corporate social responsibility, also known as CSR.
The moves come weeks after the House of Commons defeated Bill C-300, a Liberal-sponsored piece of legislation that aimed at encouraging Canadian miners to act ethically abroad. In the year leading up to the final vote, some mining companies, including Barrick, were accused of abuses at some of their operations ranging from human rights violations to environmental concerns. Miners denied the allegations, calling them lies and unsubstantiated attacks.
However, the dispute has led companies such as Barrick, which has interests in 25 operating mines on five continents, to respond with measures to improve their performance and their public perception.
"I think C-300 was a bit of a wakeup call for us in the sense that it highlighted the perception gap between what we saw what we were doing and how others see our CSR practices," Barrick chief executive officer Aaron Regent said in an interview.
"That was something that was quite discouraging and disappointing and frustrating, to be honest."
The company realized it needed to do more to promote the benefits it believes it brings communities where it operates.
"We are not quite like Coca-Cola or Pepsi, who have mastered the art of telling their story. We are a bit behind in that respect," Mr. Regent said.
He also acknowledged Barrick needs to do more to address concerns around its social and environmental practices.
"We aren't perfect. We have challenges in some of our operations and we are trying to address those challenges in a pro-active way," Mr. Regent said. "We are trying to step up our game."
To help do that, Barrick's new advisory board will begin its work next year, giving the company advice on social and environmental issues, a move other resource companies have also taken to help set CSR policies. Barrick is also searching for a candidate with CSR experience to serve as an independent director with voting rights on its board starting next year.
The Toronto-based producer also recently became the 18th company and the first Canadian miner to join the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights, which is for companies looking for guidance on identifying human rights and security risks. Barrick is also vowing to do annual independent audits of its social and environmental performance.
MiningWatch Canada spokesperson Catherine Coumans said Barrick's initiatives are recognition the company "needs to pull up their socks in a serious way" when it comes to CSR.
"From that perspective these are positive signs," she said.
However, she said the company still has a lot of work to do to both improve its practices and acknowledge instances where she alleges it has not lived up to environmental and human rights standards.