Sustainability

The CDP, formerly known as the Carbon Disclosure Project, goal is to encourage a rational response to climate change, water management and biodiversity by facilitating a dialogue between stakeholders and businesses supported by harmonized, quality data. Agnico Eagle has been reporting to CDP for over a decade and continues to report on an annual basis. We participate in all three questionnaires: Climate Change, Water Security and Forests.

See our latest CDP disclosures below:

- 2022 Disclosure on Climate Change 
- 2022 Disclosure on Water Security 
- 2022 Disclosure on Forests

Agnico Eagle understands that operating responsibly and maintaining the trust of our stakeholders requires that we demonstrate that the gold we produce has been extracted in a manner that does not fuel unlawful armed conflict, nor contribute to serious human rights abuses or breach international law. As such, we have adopted and implemented the World Gold Council’s (WGC) Conflict-Free Gold Standard (CFGS).

To view annual audit and certification reports, click here. 

We disclose on an annual basis specific payments made to all governments in Canada and abroad including taxes and royalties, as per the Canadian Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act (ESTMA). 

To consult our latest ESTMA report, click here.

For more detailed information on financial performance refer to our Annual Report.

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) sets out specific criteria and indicators that organizations can use to measure and report on their economic, environmental, and social performance. Agnico Eagle’s annual sustainability report is prepared in accordance with the GRI Standards.

To consult our 2022 GRI Index and Data Table, click here.

For more information, visit globalreporting.org.

The Detour Lake Mine, Kittilä Mine, La India Mine, as well as the Pinos Altos and Meadowbank Complexes are currently certified as compliant with the International Cyanide Management Code (ICMC). Meliadine Mine completed its first certification audit in late 2022 and is awaiting certification from ICMC. The LaRonde Complex is scheduled to have its first certification audit in early 2023. Fosterville and Macassa completed ICMC gap assessments in 2022. Fosterville will become a signatory in 2023 and work towards certification.

For more information on ICMC, visit cyanidecode.org.

To consult our audit reports, click here.

As a member of the World Gold Council (WGC), Agnico Eagle is committed to producing gold in a responsible manner. To underscore our commitment, we fully endorse the WGC's Responsible Gold Mining Principles ("RGMPs" or "the Principles").

 Accordingly, we:

• develop and implement policies, systems, processes, and controls that conform with the Principles;
• disclose information to support external stakeholders understanding of how we achieve conformance;
• secure annual independent assurance review to strengthen credibility and stakeholders’ confidence in the process and conclusions; and,
• disclose instances or events that have given rise to a situation of non-conformance and the steps taken to remedy the situation.

The Principles apply to – and must be implemented at – all gold mining operations over which the Company has direct control, including Exploration and Closed Sites within 3 years of acquisition or commencement of activities.

2022 Activities

External Assurance

In accordance with the RGMPs implementation schedule, four (4) Agnico Eagle mines were visited and externally evaluated by a third-party assurance provider in 2022.

Meliadine Mine, which began commercial production in 2019, was externally assured in 2022 by EEM EHS Management. Fosterville, Macassa and Detour Lake Mines were assured in 2022 by Perspective Consulting Inc. The third-party assurance providers found all four (4) mines to be in full conformance with the RGMPs as defined by the "Year 3" assurance requirements set out in the Assurance Framework for the Responsible Gold Mining Principles (available here).

Conformance with the RGMPs

To support the monitoring of conformance with the RGMPs at all Agnico Eagle mines, including ones not scheduled for external assurance in any given year, Agnico Eagle uses a self-assessment tool to evaluate the Company's policies, internal systems, processes, controls and performance against all ten Principles.

In 2022, the self-assessment was done by internal senior subject matter experts at both a corporate level and at the six (6) mines that had been externally audited in 2021: Kittilä, Meadowbank, LaRonde, Goldex, Pinos Altos and La India. The findings of the self-assessment were then assured by by EEM EHS Management.

Based on the monitoring procedures performed both internally and externally, Agnico Eagle conformed with the Responsible Gold Mining Principles for the year 2022.

Moving forward

In 2023, we will take the opportunity to reinforce the alignment with external standards including the RGMPs by updating our Risk Monitoring and Management System (RMMS). Amongst other initiatives, we plan to finalize the development of a Chance Finds process and continue to keep up to date our risk management and training processes. We will also substantiate RGMPs implementation evaluation at exploration and closed sites. We finally plan to continue to reinforce our processes by closely following the development of new external requirements and improving our practices as required in a timely matter.

Agnico Eagle's 2022 Annual Report on the implementation of the RGMPs and independent assurance reports for can be view here. 

For more information on RGMPs, click here.

The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) Metals and Mining disclosures and metrics identify financially material sustainability topics and metrics relevant for our industry. Agnico Eagle began reporting SASB disclosures and metrics for the 2019 reporting year and continues to report on an annual basis.

To consult our 2022 SASB Index and Data Table, click here.

Responsible tailings management is part of the commitments made in our Sustainable Development Policy. It means we are committed to managing tailings facilities to minimize effects on the environment and protect the health and safety of our employees and communities.

To fulfill our commitment to responsible tailings management, we locate, design, construct, operate, decommission and close tailings facilities while ensuring that:

• All structures are designed, constructed, and operated to meet appropriate stability criteria;
• All solids are managed within designated areas;
• All aspects of tailings management comply with regulatory requirements, Company standards, sound engineering principles and applicable industry best practices, including the principles of MAC’s Tailings Guide; and
• Leadership, personal commitment and accountability from all employees and contractors involved in tailings management is promoted.

 We have implemented a Tailings Management Policy and we continue to implement the Mining Association of Canada’s (MAC) tailings management governance model, which provides clear accountability for tailings management.

For more details on our tailings management, consult our Tailings Summary Reports:

- 2023
- 2021 
- 2019

Agnico Eagle recognizes the importance of providing clear, comprehensive, high-quality information on the impacts of climate change on our business and our impact on the climate. In 2021, we committed to support the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and have aligned our sustainability report’s energy and climate change section accordingly (see page 46). We continue to refine our understanding of climate-related financial risks and in 2022 released our first Climate Action Report, working to provide more detailed disclosures as outlined by the TCFD.

To view the Climate Action Report, click here.

The Mining Association of Canada’s (MAC) Towards Sustainable Mining (TSM) initiative promotes best practices in environmental protection, energy and climate change management, Indigenous and community relations, safety and health. Agnico Eagle is a strong supporter of TSM, is committed to applying the TSM protocols at all operations no matter where they are located globally, and will continue to actively support this initiative in the future.

TSM external verifications are a condition of membership in MAC and are performed every three years. In 2022, Meliadine Mine completed its first TSM external verification and was evaluated AA and higher for all indicators. Both external verification and self-assessment results are disclosed publicly, mine by mine, on the MAC website. Our Ontario and Australian sites are in the process of adopting TSM and completed verification on their progress as new adopters in 2022. Macassa, Detour Lake and Fosterville will publicly report on their TSM self-assessment in 2024 and be externally verified in 2025.

For more information on TSM and our assessment results, visit mining.ca.

Agnico Eagle is working to support progress on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). We recognize that the mining industry has an opportunity to positively contribute to all 17 of the SDGs. We also have a responsibility to manage the potential negative impacts of mining.

For information on our contributions, click here.

For more information on UN SDGs, visit un.org/sustainabledevelopment

The Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights (VPSHRs) guide companies in maintaining the safety and security of their operations within an operating framework that ensures respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. Agnico Eagle began adopting the VPSHRs in 2016 and became a formal member in 2017. A specific set of criteria was developed and approved in 2020 to enhance our risk management process. Agnico Eagle reports annually on VPSHR conformance. In addition, an external audit was performed in 2022 for the Meliadine Mine.

For more information on the VPSHR, visit voluntaryprinciples.org.

To consult our annual report, click here.

Responsible water management is part of the commitments made in our Sustainable Development Policy. In line with the Mining Association of Canada (MAC) Towards Sustainable Mining (TMS) initiative, Agnico Eagle is committed to manage water using Best Applicable Practices with the objective to protect the public health and safety, minimize harm to our employees and protect the environment. Risks and opportunities related to water management are managed through our internal Risk Management and Monitoring System (RMMS).

Our commitments to responsible water management are detailed in our Water Management Policy.

The Workforce Disclosure Initiative (WDI) aims to improve corporate transparency and accountability on workforce issues, provide companies and investors with comprehensive and comparable data, and help increase the provision of good jobs worldwide. Agnico Eagle participated for the first time in 2022.

For more information on the WDI, click here.