Reducing the visual impact of our operations and enhancing biodiversity

The mining and processing of talc is relatively benign from an environment perspective. Our key environmental issue is, in fact, land management, but even in this department we are very fortunate in that we have very little unwanted rock mixed in with the talc that has to be separated and discarded. The overburden (sterile rock) that covers Luzenac's open-pit talc mines is removed to designated areas. It is covered with local top soil and revegetated with appropriate plant life. The restoration schemes we implement are designed to enhance local species and biodiversity. To help us, we engage local academics to advise us on cultivation techniques, the choice of species, where and when to plant, how to nurture and so on. This ongoing rehabilitation process means that during the working life of a mine the visual impact is reduced and when a mine is eventually closed, the land can be restored more quickly and more cost-effectively. For instance, the former waste dumps at our Rabenwald mine in Austria have been transformed into wooded areas rich in local wildlife. Some 400,000 m² of land have been reforested with over 140,000 trees of local species including alder, birch, mountain ash, spruce, fir, larch, sycamore and wild cherry.

Wherever possible, we also take steps to visually integrate operations into their surroundings. Buildings are carefully restored in the local style and continue to be utilised. Decommissioned buildings are dismantled, refurbished or handed over to the local community.

Luzenac's open pit mines in France, Austria, Spain, Italy and the United States are in high, often mountainous regions of great natural beauty. The excavations are not overlooked by any communities. Luzenac's largest mine, Trimouns in the French Pyrenees, has become a significant tourist attraction with some 10,000 visitors each year and a closed talc mine in Italy has been converted into a museum which conducts guided tours for visitors.