"Rising copper demand fuels concern over pollution and rights abuses", 11 May 2025

"In its latest Global Trade Update, UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) projected this week that 80 new copper mines and $250 billion in investment would be required by 2030 to meet demand and avoid a looming shortfall that could stall the world’s shift to clean energy and digital infrastructure.

The report called copper the “new strategic raw material” for the green and digital economy...

A separate new study, meanwhile, has warned that ramping up copper production could come at a human and environmental cost.

In its Transition Minerals Tracker published on Wednesday, the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre (BHRRC), a global research and advocacy group, singled out copper as associated with 513 allegations of human rights abuses recorded between 2010 and 2024, accounting for about 60% of a total of 835 cases linked to the mining of transition minerals.

The tracker monitors abuses associated with the extraction of eight key transition minerals – copper, bauxite, cobalt, lithium, manganese, nickel, zinc and iron ore...

Caroline Avan, head of just transition and natural resources at BHRRC, warned that the urgency of the energy transition should not be used to “justify an unprincipled scramble for transition minerals” that is driving widespread human rights abuses, environmental destruction and growing community conflict.  

A transition built on exploitative minerals supply chains “is not simply unjust – it is unstable, unpredictable, and ultimately unsustainable”, she said, adding that “the path to net zero cannot be paved with more injustice and global inequality”...

With copper reserves concentrated in five countries – Chile, Peru, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Australia and Russia – the researchers found that the highest number of allegations in the 15-year period occurred in three of those countries, including 14% of the total in Peru, 11% in Chile and 10% in the DRC.

In 2024 alone, more than half of the 156 abuse allegations linked to minerals projects and mines were associated with copper extraction, which over the years has faced significant operational threats as a result of conflicts with communities and associated legal challenges, the researchers said.

Central and South America featured as hotspots for copper-related legal cases. The researchers also found that 52% of copper mines located in high water stress areas had impacts on water access and/or pollution....

The alleged abuses in BHRRC’s Transition Minerals Tracker usually affect individuals and families living near mining sites and their environment, with three in five involving local communities and another 77 infringing on Indigenous Peoples’ rights, including violation of their right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) about projects...

Last September, a panel of experts convened by the UN Secretary-General called on governments and industry to prevent human rights abuses in mining for energy transition minerals. Other principles it proposed included safeguards for nature, adopting a justice perspective, sharing financial benefits with communities, investing responsibly, ensuring accountability and promoting international cooperation...

The BHRRC researchers found that just 20 companies have been associated with 60% of allegations and attacks since 2010, with the top five companies for 2024 listed as Georgian American Alloys, China Minmetals, Codelco, Grupo México and Sinomine Resource Group. 

Additionally, the tracker documented 157 attacks against human rights and environmental defenders, accounting for one in five of the total abuse allegations recorded...."