Community & Opinion Leader Survey - Rio Tinto
19 June 2008 at 2:36 pm
Economic and environmental issues are regarded as the major challenges for Australia in the next five years according to a survey commissioned by mining giant Rio Tinto.
The 2007 Community and Opinion Leader Survey says the key environmental issues include climate change, greenhouse gas emissions, water shortages and the mining industry’s overall impact on the environment.
On the economic challenges, the survey participants’ concerns ranged from building and sustaining economic growth, managing Australia’s trade deficit, personal debt, the value of the Australian dollar and inflation.
The survey was distributed to 1,500 federal, state and local government representatives as well as community, business and academic leaders across Australia.
The survey was skewed towards participants who had a good knowledge of the metals and minerals industry.
While the survey participants praised the work of Rio Tinto in communities and rated the companies CSR as above average, respondents indicated that they knew relatively little about its environmental performance.
The survey found that many respondents chose the ‘don’t know’ option when asked to rate the company’s performance in a number of environmental issues, while others indicated this as an area of improvement.
In publishing the survey results Rio Tinto provides information on where it is addressing the key issues raised.
A copy of the 2007 Community and Opinion Leaders Survey can be downloaded here.
