Katerina Adam

In an increasingly globalized and sustainability-conscious market, the environmental attributes of products consist of the information of primary importance for the sustainable development of manufacturing companies. The aim of the paper is to statistically analyze the Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) reports that have resulted from Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) in the metal products industry based on two parameters: (i) the geographical scope and (ii) the category of the product. During recent years, EPDs have been developed as a tool for the carbon footprint assessment of products; however, they not yet very widely applied by metal-manufacturing companies and/or requested by key stakeholders as customers. Moreover, in the metal industry, the use of EPD reports is not yet as widespread as in other industrial segments such as plastics. The present article is based on the EPD Library of the official website of the International EPD System (Environdec) and the published EPDs of the Institut Bauen und Umwelt e.V. (IBU). Data were extracted, and the relevant information was compiled by using the available filters of the EPD and the IBU Libraries. Based on these data, the number of EPD reports issued by manufacturing companies was examined as per country of origin and product category.

This paper investigated the potential of thiosulfate as an alternative to cyanide for gold recovery from pressure oxidation residues. Thiosulfate leaching experiments were conducted under controlled conditions, varying parameters such as initial thiosulfate concentration, initial pH, temperature and solid–liquid mixing ratio (S/L). The results indicate that thiosulfate demonstrates promising gold recovery rates, with optimization potential through parameter adjustments. This study aimed to provide valuable insights into the feasibility of adopting thiosulfate as a gold recovery agent, promoting environmentally responsible practices in the metallurgical industry while addressing the challenges associated with pressure oxidation residues.

The aim of this paper is to study and compare the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standard widely used in the Sustainability Reporting of the Raw Material (RM) Industry with the recently emerged European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). The Non-Financial Reporting Directive (NFRD), 2014, that initially set the requirements for NFR to companies with more than 500 employees, will be replaced by 2024 with the new European Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) 2023. As of 2024, large undertakings, as well as small and medium-sized undertakings that are public-interest entities, will be required to publish reports on their environmental and social impacts, replacing the NFRD. Within this framework, the present paper aims to review and compare the two standards, GRI and ESRS, given that due to the forthcoming Directive, a significantly higher number of companies, as compared to the entities subjected to NFRD, including large and SME companies of the RM sector, will have to prepare the procedures for the implementation of the new standards. Moreover, it has been reported that EFRAG-GRI organizations have started planning the new standard update. Taking into account the extensive use of the GRI indicators in sustainability reporting, the article highlights both their similarities and differences with the first set of 12 draft ESRS. From this study, it was mainly concluded that the two sustainability reporting standards present several similarities; thus, companies already using GRI are expected to seamlessly adapt to the new standard.

The aim of this article is to present priority themes covered by the Health and Safety training programs of the Greek and European mining industry during the last decade. Mining is considered as an industry presenting high occupational risks. The International Labor Organization (ILO) estimates that 1% of the world’s labor force is engaged in mining, yet mining accounts for 5% of occupational fatalities. Despite the use of advanced technologies in a safer working environment and “the zero harm-zero accidents target”, mining accident statistics indicate that despite the gradual decrease in fatality rate, safety performance has reached a safety plateau. In order to further improve this performance, training and promotion of a safety culture through implementation of mine safety plans and enhancement of technical and non-technical skills at all levels of management are prerequisite measures. Currently, training is increasingly relying on immersive virtual reality to simulate complex operations in potentially dangerous environments. Open-cut or underground mining simulators provide safe, replicable and cost effective environments for miners to be trained and for engineers and managers to test different conditions, new ideas, strategies and scenario outcomes, without exposing employees in real time hazards. High-end training programs have the potential not only to improve workplace safety conditions but also to contribute to more effective management and finally to a more sustainable mining industry.

The raw materials (RM) sector is linked to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and it impacts their implementation, in a positive or adverse manner, throughout the whole RM value chain (e.g., mining, processing, metallurgy, recycling, etc.). This study aims to identify and rank the SDGs that are classified as more significant for this sector, according to the views of key stakeholders, university students, academics, professionals, and industry representatives, in three East and South-East Europe (ESEE) countries: Greece, Poland, and Slovakia. Moreover, the expected challenges of the RM sector in the next ten years are presented and are based on the opinions of the industry representatives of the abovementioned countries. Within this framework, 423 participants provided their views in a survey with structured questionnaires. The results were analysed on the basis of the stakeholder groups and the countries that were examined. SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure), 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), and 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), were highly ranked by the stakeholders, which indicates a strong link between these SDGs and the RM sector. Digital transformation, recycling and material chain optimization for end-of-life products, and increased resource efficiency in mineral and metallurgical processes, were reported as the most important challenges that are expected to be faced by the RM industry in the next decade.

The mineral raw materials’ resource efficiency is currently recognized in Europe as the way for the future development of the European mining economies. With this aim, a West Balkan Mineral Register was created in the EIT Raw Materials RESEERVE Project, including Primary and Secondary Raw Materials of six Eastern and South-Eastern Europe (ESEE) countries, i.e., Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia. Within the Project, a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) and Gap Analysis was also performed for the development of the raw material sector in the region. This paper summarizes the main strengths to be exploited, i.e., the significant geological potential, the presence of critical raw materials (e.g., Sb, Co, REEs) in primary and secondary raw materials, and the challenges to address, i.e., compliance of resources/reserves classification with international standards, integration of state’s mineral policy with spatial planning strategies, improvement of the business environment, capacity building of the raw materials workforce and enhancement of the public acceptance of the sector, in order to achieve the sustainable development of the mineral resources of the six ESEE countries. These opportunities comply with the objectives of the EU Raw Materials Initiative and are expected to contribute in the further enhancement of those economies in transition for the upcoming years.

The Raw Materials (RM) sector is linked to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), impacting their implementation throughout the whole RM value chain (e.g., mining, processing, metallurgy, recycling, etc.). This study aims to identify and rank the most significant SDGs for this sector, from the perspective of key stakeholders, academics, university students, professionals, and industry representatives, in three East and South-East Europe (ESEE) countries: Poland, Greece, and Slovakia. Within this framework, 423 stakeholders from the above groups provided their views in a survey with structured questionnaires. The results were analysed, based on the stakeholders’ groups and the role of the sector in the countries examined. Overall, the SDGs 9-Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure-, 8-Decent Work and Economic Growth-, and 7-Affordable and Clean Energy- were highly ranked by the stakeholders, indicating a strong link between these SDGs and the RM sector.

The project Enhancing the skills of ESEE RM students towards the achievement of SDGs(EnActSDGs) aims to establish an action plan for the realignment of the current raw materials curricula of three universities in East and Southeast Europe towards the incorporation of the sustainable development principles into their educational programs. The action plan will be based on the educational needs of the raw materials sector as defined by academia and students, industry, and professionals. The authors present a preliminary assessment of the three universities’ study programs by using a set of assessment criteria defined in cooperation with selected stakeholders.