Minimize: Coexisting with nature by reducing our impact on biodiversity (3/5)
In this third article of our biodiversity campaign, we move on to the second step of the mitigation hierarchy: Minimization. This step of the biodiversity mitigation hierarchy, focuses on reducing residual impacts throughout the lifecycle of our projects. By combining scientific expertise, local adaptation, and employee engagement, Imerys is actively working to minimize its impact on natural heritage. From protecting peregrine falcons in the United Kingdom (UK) to managing invasive species in Thailand, our teams around the world are taking actions to safeguard biodiversity.
Our structured approach
Minimizing means reducing the duration, intensity, or extent of impacts on biodiversity as much as possible when total avoidance is not feasible. For example, this can involve:
- Modifying infrastructure design
- Adapting the planning of operations on site and the behaviors of employees and also suppliers on-site
- Limiting the impacts generated by our activities, such as dust, noise, or light.
- Managing habitats.
Implement concrete actions to reduce impacts on fauna and flora
A safer home for the world’s fastest bird in the United-Kingdom
At our West Thurrock site in the UK, we adapted the site’s infrastructure to protect the peregrine falcon, the world’s fastest bird and a protected species. Working with the London Peregrine Partnership, we installed a nesting box away from our activities to provide this species a safe breeding space. Additionally, we developed an emergency rescue plan for fledglings and installed cameras to monitor the nest. After four years, more than ten chicks have hatched safely.
The peregrine falcon is a protected and endangered species in Europe. It has a specific breeding habitat, nesting on rock faces and sometimes on high buildings. These habitats are present on some Imerys sites.
Every day, I see and hear the birds on site. Knowing that our efforts are helping to protect an endangered species is incredibly rewarding.
Preserving bat habitats in France
At our Ploemeur site in France, we take a variety of measures to minimize our impact on local wildlife. For instance, we suspend all activity during breeding periods and adjust our working hours to avoid disturbing nocturnal species. More specifically, to protect bats in the areas where we operate, we use ultrasound to locate roosts and install one-way devices on trees, allowing them to leave safely and find alternative refuges in preserved areas.
Limiting the spread of Invasive Alien Species
What helps nature in one place can harm it in another. At our site of Ranong, in Thailand, a biodiversity survey identified 80 Acacia mangium trees, an Invasive Alien Species (IAS)* that threatens native vegetation. Originally planted during the rehabilitation of a former quarry, these trees now dominate native vegetation. To restore balance, our team applied a method called "girdling": removing a strip of bark to naturally kill the trees while leaving the trunks standing as habitats for wildlife. This approach has successfully reduced their number from 80 to 30. To reinforce the success of IAS control actions and support local biodiversity development, the teams at the site also plant local and endemic species in parallel.
I'm very proud to be doing this work. As inhabitants of this planet, who depend on its natural resources to live, we should all play a part in reducing biodiversity loss. It's our responsibility to preserve nature as a legacy for future generations.
Managing IAS populations is a priority on several other sites across Imerys, using different techniques depending on species. In France, at the Murat and Quartz de Dordogne sites, employees have been trained to perform manual uprooting, while at Ploemeur, we use eco-grazing with goats and sheep, along with specialized tools adapted to the soil and root characteristics of invasive plants.
- Our commitment: towards no net loss of biodiversity.
- Using the biodiversity mitigation hierarchy to prioritize our actions.
- Working with experts to develop an approach based on science.
- Addressing our main impact, biodiversity habitat degradation, on 20 priority extraction sites.
Find out more in this article.
The management of biodiversity is a complex topic because of the inherent intertwined interconnections within nature. It creates another challenge: there is no standardized method or single indicator to measure biodiversity. There are, however, recognized tools to manage ecological impacts. Mitigation hierarchy is a widely used scientific approach that aims to limit the negative impact on biodiversity based on a step methodology of avoiding, minimizing, restoring and finally offsetting the impact. The biodiversity mitigation hierarchy is the cornerstone of our biodiversity policy.
An animal, plant or organism introduced to an area outside its natural range that has colonised a new area, disrupting their balance and causing ecological, health or economic damage. These are known as Invasive Alien Species (IAS).
Discover how we’re working towards no net loss of biodiversity:
To preserve natural heritage, it is essential to anticipate and limit impacts right from the project design phase. This involves rigorous analysis of the ecological context and the implementation of appropriate measures to minimize our footprint on ecosystems.
In the previous article, we presented our commitments, strategy, protocols and tools built with scientific experts and deployed across the Group to help protect biodiversity. For this second article, we talk about the first and crucial stage of the biodiversity mitigation hierarchy.
More than ever, we must act to preserve our endangered natural heritage, as highlighted during the United Nations COP 16 on Biological Diversity held from October 21 to November 1 2024 in Cali, Colombia. At Imerys, we are committed to mitigating the biodiversity loss that our activities can cause. How ? We tell you all about it in our first voluntary Biodiversity Report, from our commitments to our scientific approach and concrete actions on the ground. Over the coming weeks, a series of articles will showcase how we are turning these commitments into life. Let’s start with the key takeaways from our first-ever voluntary biodiversity report.
Preserving biodiversity also means looking beyond our sites. When our impacts on nature cannot be totally avoided, reduced or restored, we move on to the ultimate stage: offset. This final phase of the biodiversity mitigation hierarchy aims to balance the scales by generating biodiversity gains outside our sites at least equivalent to the losses caused by our activities.
Discover how we implement offset measures through concrete examples of wetlands and habitat restoration in Sandersville, USA, and in Clérac, France.
From a volcanic island in Greece to a forest in Austria, we adapt to the unique local climatic conditions of each site with the same objective: to bring nature back by restoring our quarries.
When our impacts on nature cannot be completely avoided or minimized, the third step of the biodiversity mitigation hierarchy aims at repairing what extractive activities are altering.
To preserve natural heritage, it is essential to anticipate and limit impacts right from the project design phase. This involves rigorous analysis of the ecological context and the implementation of appropriate measures to minimize our footprint on ecosystems.
In the previous article, we presented our commitments, strategy, protocols and tools built with scientific experts and deployed across the Group to help protect biodiversity. For this second article, we talk about the first and crucial stage of the biodiversity mitigation hierarchy.