Minerals Report - International Seabed Authority

The DBM Environmental Management Team has two focus areas:
� Maintenance of the ISO 14001 certification plus continuous
improvement of the environmental standards for all aspects of
the operation;
� Provision of environmental services for clients.
2.3 ISO 14001 Certification and the Environmental Management
System
ISO 14001 certification is formally incorporated into De Beers’
corporate policy for environmental management, and the target date for
operations to be compliant is end 2000. DBM was the first diamond
mining operation to achieve this in 1998, and it was the first marine
diamond mining company in the world to do so [10].
The international ISO 14001 standard provides a rigorous
framework for the management of environmental issues that has been
customised specifically to address the requirements of DBM. The key
elements of the ISO 14001 standard include:
� Company policy – the environmental policy is integrated into
the company’s functioning and demonstrates serious
commitment to continuously improve environmental
management practices and prevents pollution.
� Responsibilities/accountability – DBM currently employs two
full-time environmental staff and one full-time researcher.
Partnerships with a variety of academic and research
institutions planning, evaluating and reviewing research results
ensures independent assessment. A multi-disciplinary
Environmental Management Team has been assigned specific
responsibilities, and vessel and shore-based environmental
monitors are in place;
� Legal requirements – International conventions such as
MARPOL are applied to prevent pollution at sea by marine
operations. Countries in which DBM operates have numerous
requirements. For example, prospecting and mining license
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