As Europe prepares to scale up its critical minerals production, the societal debate on mining is sweeping across the continent. In late June, The Guardian reported that planned lithium mines in rural Portugal, Serbia, and France are facing growing resistance from rural communities over environmental and heritage concerns. This development mirrors the unfolding situation in New Zealand, where in late May, Resources Minister Shane Jones sparked a national debate by calling for a major expansion of mining, with his framing of the industry as key to national prosperity prompting backlash from environmental groups.

With economies pushing toward decarbonisation and digitalisation, the rising demand for critical minerals is forcing societies to confront a fundamental question: how can we mine the materials we need without compromising the sustainability we seek to achieve? While this question is entirely legitimate, the debate remains too often shaped by outdated views that pit mining against environmental protection. As responsible, forward-thinking mining companies are already showcasing, sustainable mining is not a contradiction, but a necessity, with the industry’s ESG pioneers generating considerable economic, environmental and social value in local communities.

An industry in motion

As the green and digital transitions gather pace, public and civil society stakeholders must not lose sight of a crucial reality: its successful delivery depends on steady supplies of a small group of raw materials.

The International Energy Forum has rightly highlighted the central role of metals like lithium, nickel and copper in the sustainable economy of the future. Lithium, for instance, is indispensable to lithium-ion batteries – the backbone of modern energy storage – while nickel plays a growing role in powering electric vehicles and copper underpins the infrastructure powering energy systems, as well as the AI data centres driving the digital transition.

According to the World Bank, production of certain minerals may need to rise by nearly 500% by 2050, with over 3 billion tons required for the infrastructure needed to meet global climate targets. In accelerating the production of clean energy technologies globally, outdated methods of extraction and their associated impacts clearly cannot be allowed to continue. The consequences of poorly-regulated mining – particularly biodiversity loss, pollution, soil degradation and community displacement – are well documented and no longer tolerable.

Under growing scrutiny, the industry is escalating its adaptation. Beyond simply mitigating potential harm, the most future-oriented players in the industry are increasingly reframing mining as a net contributor to sustainability, with their interventions spanning biodiversity, green industrial development and a wide range of social initiatives within their surrounding communities.

Mining companies at sustainable innovation vanguard

In the DRC, Chinese mining company CMOC is capitalising on its soaring copper production to help drive the green and digital transitions, while wielding its financial resources to promote biodiversity, decarbonisation and socioeconomic development in its TFM and KFM mining communities.

In 2024, CMOC produced 650,161 tonnes of copper and recorded the world’s fastest growth in copper output, catapulting the company into the top 10. To ensure this growth aligns with its ambitious ESG strategy, CMOC’s TFM site runs conservation initiatives focused on copper flora plant species, with its years-long efforts contributing positively to species diversity. Meanwhile, the company recently launched a participatory model of water quality monitoring and environmental stewardship involving the observation of community residents from villages surrounding its KFM operation. Moreover, CMOC has signed an agreement for the development of the 200 MW Heshima hydroelectric project aimed at powering its operations with clean energy while contributing to broader community energy access. Coupled with its nearly $41 million community investments in areas including health, education and vocational training last year, CMOC is establishing itself as a leading ESG force in the global mining industry.

In Chile’s lithium-rich Atacama, SQM is similarly coupling strong production with a forward-looking ESG strategy. As part of its joint venture with Chile’s state-owned miner, Codelco, it plans to boost capacity by up to 33% by 2060, while cutting environmental impact through innovation.

Since 2018, SQM has halved freshwater use in the Salar de Atacama, thanks to new water-efficient processes and plans for desalination, while the firm is equally piloting direct lithium extraction (DLE) technologies to reduce pressure on fragile ecosystems. On the ground, the company has delivered solar power and vocational training, demonstrating how mining can support long-term, community-led development.

What’s more, mirroring CMOC’s emerging participatory model, SQM and Codelco are moving toward co-governance with Atacameño’s Indigenous communities, with current negotiations focused on shared environmental monitoring, benefit-sharing and water governance to maximise sustainability and local value creation.

Public support vital to continue momentum

Harnessing their considerable financial resources, technical expertise and vast physical presence within rural communities, SQM and CMOC are among the mining companies showing the way forward – building community trust and changing public perceptions of the industry. To encourage more of the sector to adopt sustainable practices, strong, coordinated public sector engagement is essential. When governments provide the right frameworks, mining can maximise its potential as a driver of inclusive, resilient development.

Institutions like the World Bank and the African Development Bank (AfDB) emphasise the importance of clear regulations, equitable revenue-sharing and local content policies to ensure mining supports long-term development. Targeted policy levers can support the mining industry’s transition, with the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) highlighting international best practices, such as royalty schemes tied to community development funds, mandatory social impact assessments and transparent reporting requirements.

In South Africa, companies are legally required to implement social and labour plans focused on housing, education, and infrastructure. Meanwhile, Papua New Guinea’s Lihir Gold Mine has embedded community agreements into its operations, funding health and training programmes. Complementing government-led efforts to lay the right regulatory foundation, local communities must remain active partners in shaping how mining unfolds in their regions, with a voice in both design and delivery.

Looking ahead, meeting the demands of the green transition requires more than raw materials – it demands a more sophisticated public discourse. As calls for critical minerals intensify, so too must the industry’s transparent, long-term commitment to high environmental and social standards. Rather than retreating into false dichotomies, policymakers and civil society alike must help champion this new model in which mining is not a liability, but a lever for sustainable development.