IRMA is the only organization with a comprehensive global standard that covers all mined materials (except energy fuels) coming from all sizes of industrial mines all over the world, and offers true third-party assessment at the site of the mine.
We are governed equitably by a diverse set of stakeholders. The vast majority of standards created for mining are governed by industry alone.
We measure responsible practices in mining across four principles: social responsibility, environmental responsibility, business integrity and planning for positive legacies.
We use independent third-party auditors for credible verification of achievement, and define both “best practices” as well as ways to show improvement by any mine regardless of where they are starting from.
We are recognized as highly credible and comprehensive by both leading companies as well as civil society not-for-profit organizations. More than 60 civil society organizations and communities have recognized IRMA and cited our Standard as one they wish to see companies adopt.
Our decision-making process is unique and based on consensus, in which support is required from all sectors. No single organization, company, or stakeholder sector has authority to make decisions that don’t work for other stakeholder groups.
IRMA leadership is made up of non-government environment and social justice groups (NGOs), organized labor unions, mining-affected communities, mining companies, and companies who purchase mined materials to make into other products, e.g. jewelry companies.
The Standard for Responsible Mining was developed through a public consultation process – we received more than 2,000 comments from over 100 different individuals and organizations. IRMA aspires to comply with the ISEAL Code of Good Practice for Setting Social and Environmental Standards.
The Standard for Responsible Mining has gone through multiple drafts to improve it and had field tests to “ground truth” the standard through simulated mine audits in the United States and Zimbabwe.
IRMA is testing the Standard’s metrics, seeking additional partnerships and expanding membership, offering self-assessment and independent-assessments against the Standard, and updating the Standard to include mineral exploration, development and processing.
