Qualified verifiers for Towards Sustainable Mining

Earlier this year, some of the Onward team completed the Towards Sustainable Mining (TSM) Verifier Training Workshop, which means that we are now qualified TSM verifiers.

The TSM framework was established in 2004 by the Minerals Association of Canada and has recently and has been adopted by the Minerals Council of Australia.

From 2025, members of the Minerals Council of Australia will be expected to assess and publicly report on their performance against TSM indicators contained within each of the protocols for each of their facilities, with independent verification to occur every three years.

The purpose of TSM is to further enhance site-level performance in the Australian mining industry through consistent measurement and reporting, building on the mining industry’s track record of better sustainability performance through transparency.

TSM is overseen by a national Community of Interest Advisory Panel, comprising representatives from key stakeholder groups, including First Nations, communities, investors and non-government organisations.

The workshop was aimed at training site-based personnel completing annual TSM self-assessments for their facility, and external verifiers in conducting external/independent verification of facilities. It focussed on the TSM Terms of Reference for Verifiers, and the eight performance protocols, categorised into three core areas:

🤝 Communities and people, with protocols including indigenous and community relationships, crisis management and communications planning, safety and health, and preventing child and forced labour.

🍃 Environmental stewardship, with protocols including tailings management, biodiversity conservation management, and water stewardship.

🌏 Climate change and the climate change protocol, including site-level targets and management.

Our key takeaways from this training?

➡️ Each of the protocols will have a ‘champion’ at the facility-level who has completed the TSM training and, due to their familiarity with the protocol, will generally be expected to complete the annual TSM self-assessment.

➡️ Assistance from external verifiers can also be undertaken where required.

➡️ The champion may be responsible for one, multiple or all protocols depending on the facility.

Head to TSM Framework for more information.