Declaration of the Sustainable Development Goals of Mining Companies and the Effect of Their Activities in Selected Areas

Abstract

The article addresses the issues of sustainable development in relation to a selected group of mining companies. The main objective of the article was to verify the companies’ declarations on the convergence of sustainable development goals (SDGs) and the assessment of their actual actions. In order to achieve this objective, the authors hypothesized and adopted, among others, a multi-stage logical thinking-based methodology. In addition, several research methods were used, i.e., a review of regulations and scientific articles, a qualitative literature review—extracting and collecting information, developing a categorization framework, and a comparative method based on a case study. The study started with extracting and collecting social and environmental information disclosed by Polish mining companies at the level of declaring SDGs targets (KGHM, LW Bogdanka, and JSW). Sourced from reports and company statements. In the next step, a leader (KGHM) was selected, and a comparison was made with a global enterprise (Barrick Gold), according to the adopted categorization framework for social initiatives. Common areas of both SDGs declarations and actions for these entities were identified, and measures of their implementation were suggested. Two main metrics were proposed for the social area, i.e., health and safety in relation to the financial performance of the companies and diversity in management and supervisory bodies. The role and importance of the prioritization of ESG (environmental, social, and governance) disclosures by the industry players are indicated.