For immediate release February 3
The Elk Valley’s Line Creek coal mine has been named in a new report exposing environmental impacts and human rights abuses occurring in Hyundai’s steel-making supply chain around the world.
The report, which was released by Mighty Earth with support from coalition partners including Wildsight, highlights how water pollution from the Line Creek mine contradicts the Hyundai Motor Group’s (HMG) oft-touted commitment to sustainability.
“Alongside our partners, we’re calling on Hyundai to do its due diligence and use its significant influence as the world’s third-largest automotive company to ensure its suppliers aren’t unduly impacting the environment,” said Simon Wiebe, Mining Policy and Impacts Researcher for Wildsight.
In recent years, HMG has successfully marketed itself as a sustainability leader. Its Sustainability Message states the company thinks “first and foremost about the environment,” and “strives to realize a better world for the future by developing eco-friendly products and services through technological innovation.”
The marketing strategy has paid off, resulting in a self-proclaimed US$6 billion jump in its brand value over three years. But the Mighty Earth report adds to a growing body of evidence that Hyundai’s sustainability credentials are a mirage.
The report found that Teck Coal Ltd shipped metallurgical coal, likely sourced from the Line Creek mine, to Hyundai Steel in South Korea. Hyundai Steel, a subsidiary of the Hyundai Motor Company, produces the steel that’s used to manufacture Hyundai and Kia vehicles such as the Tucson, Santa Fe and Santa Cruz.
The Line Creek mine, along with other Elk Valley coal mines, is currently at the centre of an international water pollution investigation due to dangerously high levels of selenium and other contaminants leaking into the Elk River from piles of waste rock.
“The automotive sector is the third largest user of steel globally, and Hyundai is the only automaker in the world with its own steelmaking subsidiary; Hyundai is uniquely placed to help decarbonize and clean up the world’s steel supply chain,” said Wiebe.
“Decades of mining negligence have led to the worst selenium pollution crisis in Canada’s history, and ongoing delays in expanding and improving water treatment facilities are exacerbating the problem,” he said. “HMG has an opportunity to make good on its claims of eco-friendliness by pushing these dirty mines to clean up their mess.
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For additional quotes or interviews, please contact:
Simon Wiebe, Mining Policy and Impacts Researcher, Wildsight
simon@wildsight.ca or 403.467.0582