Mining and metals industry organisation ICMM’s November-published Tailings Progress Report reveals that, while significant progress has been made, achieving full alignment with the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM) is taking more time than initially anticipated, and remains a work in progress.

Out of 836 ICMM member facilities, 67% are in full conformance with the GISTM, while 33% remain in partial conformance, the report finds.

The report aggregated data from members’ individual disclosures made in 2025, offering a transparent snapshot of collective progress towards full conformance. It also includes case studies of members’ implementation efforts and their wider work to reduce or eliminate tailings.

When the GISTM was published in 2020, ICMM members committed that all applicable tailings facilities with an “extreme” or “very high” consequence classification would conform with the GISTM by August 2023, and all other applicable facilities by August 2025.

Having made the decision to prioritise implementing the GISTM at tailings facilities that would have the highest consequences downstream in the event of a failure, ICMM members have made the greatest progress with the facilities classified as having extreme or very high consequence ratings.

Here, the ICMM reports that over 80% of its members with extreme or very high consequence classifications are now in full conformance with the GISTM.

Further, facilities with high, significant or low consequence classifications show conformance ranges from 53% and 65%.

“While achieving full alignment with the GISTM is taking more time than initially anticipated, the commitment by ICMM members to meet its requirements at every applicable facility remains unequivocal,” says ICMM director Emma Gagen.

She adds that the system level change within companies that the GISTM has driven is unprecedented, going so far as to fundamentally reshape how tailings facilities are managed and requiring significant resources and time.

However, the criticality of effective tailings management means the sector needs to set a high bar and embrace challenges as an opportunity to share knowledge across the whole industry, notes Gagen.

“The journey to safer tailings facilities and conformance with the GISTM doesn’t have an end point,” she stresses, adding that tailings management is inherently a process of continuous improvement, and the ICMM is encouraged by the significant progress each company has made so far.

Successful outcomes will be built not only on unwavering long-term commitment by companies, but also from close collaboration between the industry, financiers, government, civil society and local communities,” concludes Gagen.