Displaying items by tag: biodiversity

Mexico: Cemex has partnered with reintroduction specialist Ovis to release bighorn sheep at a site in Sierra El Viejo, Sonora state. The UMA El Plomito ranch supplied nine sheep. Four more sheep were born in the open pre-release pen which the sheep currently inhabit. The partners will support the animals with supplementary food and water while they adapt to their new environment.

Head of sustainability Vicente Saiso said, "The reintroduction of the bighorn sheep in Sonora represents one more example of our commitment to the conservation of biodiversity. It is a successful example of joint work between companies and conservation organisations to create a better future for our planet."

UK: The Mineral Products Association (MPA) has launched an updated version of its biodiversity strategy, first published in 2013. The new strategy “commits the MPA and its members to continuing to take a positive approach to nature conservation and recovery, leaving behind more and better quality habitats than before mineral extraction and a net gain in biodiversity wherever possible, through site selection, management, restoration and aftercare,” according to the association. It sets out the commitment under eight actions, which include “monitoring to identify what works best and inform future work, sharing and celebrating good practice and successes throughout the industry, influencing policy and using our assets to engage and educate.”

Chief executive officer (CEO) Nigel Jackson said, “The minerals industry is uniquely placed to contribute to conservation and enhancement of biodiversity and has an unrivalled legacy compared to other industrial sectors. I am immensely proud of what our members have achieved and excited about what they can and will do in the future. It is high time that our significant contributions are properly recognised by policy and decision makers, to help provide our members with the support to continue doing what they do best. I believe we may be the only business sector that has been actively contributing to nature recovery at scale for so long that our strategy is unique. I will not rest until government, particularly the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), acknowledges that environmental expertise and action is not the sole preserve of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and activists. Our members have built a significant legacy and have vast practical experience of working in and with the environment to enhance and protect nature. We don’t just talk a good game, we deliver it on the ground.”

Mexico: Cemex has worked with AES Mexico, the Mexican Fund for the Conservation of Nature (FMCN), the Mexican Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT) through the General Wildlife Direction, and the National Commission of Natural Protected Areas (CONANP) to successfully reintroduce 19 American bison specimens (Bison bison) in El Carmen Nature Reserve, in Coahuila, to establish the second conservation herd of this species in Mexico.

“For almost two decades, we have carried out different alliances with companies and conservation organisations to protect and increase biodiversity in El Carmen. Examples of this include the reintroduction of the American bison, the bighorn sheep, and the pronghorn, as well as the increase in the populations of desert mule deer, white-tailed deer, and black bear,” said Vicente Saisó, director of sustainability at Cemex.

El Carmen Nature Reserve is a private cross-border conservation area in Mexico and the US that contains five different ecosystems and habitats to diverse species of plants, birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians over more than 140,000 hectares.

The American bison is the largest land mammal in North America and was present in the plains of Canada, the US and Mexico. In Mexico, American bison lived in the states of Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Durango; however, it the species was depleted in the second half of the 19th century. Currently, it is a species that is in danger of extinction in Mexico.

Prior to this collaboration, the only herd of bison considered genetically pure was at Rancho El Uno, owned by FMCN, located within the Janos Biosphere Reserve, Chihuahua. 19 specimens from this herd were moved to El Carmen, located in Maderas del Carmen Flora and Fauna Protection Area by a team of wildlife management specialists. The plan to reintroduce the American bison in El Carmen Nature Reserve was launched in April of 2019, and it will continue until 2021 with the translocation of additional specimens.