Bettercoal, the initiative headed by energy utilities to promote the continuous improvement of corporate responsibility in the coal supply chain, has announced a “global consultation of its new code of practice that builds upon existing mining standards and recognises current best practice in the industry.” The consultation process, the first phase of which will commence in September 2012, will be performed in line with international consultation best practices and include a dedicated website and in-country stakeholder meetings in four major coal producing countries.

The Bettercoal Code sets out the ethical, social and environmental principles and provisions that members expect their coal supply chain to align with, and will be the basis for performing regular on-site assessments by independent third party assessors. This information will provide a robust data-set that coal-buyers can use in their individual coal purchasing decisions. Martin Christie, Bettercoal Executive Director said: “Our aspiration is that our code becomes the globally accepted standard for ethically, socially and environmentally responsible practices in the coal supply chain. To achieve this, we need to listen carefully to and work with stakeholders during its development. Our immediate priority is to deliver the draft code for consultation, beginning in September 2012. However, we are also making good progress in developing the relevant assessment tools and will begin pilot mine assessments this year, providing a great opportunity to enhance the code through its practical application.”Bettercoal is developing the Code in close consultation with a Stakeholder Advisory Group, comprising representatives from civil society (non-governmental organisations, trade unions and academic experts) and the private sector (mining companies).

The Stakeholder Advisory Group provides advice and guidance on many aspects of Bettercoal, including on the draft Bettercoal Code that will be submitted for public consultation and the integration of comments submitted during the consultation process. Bettercoal is carrying out the global consultation process of the Bettercoal Code, in line with good practice as defined by the ISEAL Code of Practice for Setting Social and Environmental Standards.

In order to achieve this, Bettercoal plans to use the following means of outreach and engagement:

– Two consultation phases of minimum 60 days and 30 days, respectively

– An online consultation channel through a dedicated website, where users can post and view comments

– Consultation documents in four languages including English, Bahasa Indonesia, Russian and Spanish

– In-country consultation events in Europe as well as in key coal exporting countries, including Colombia, Indonesia, Russia and South Africa

For more information on the consultation process and schedule, to review the consultation Terms of Reference, and to register for the online consultation process, please visit: www.bettercoal.org