Assessment for sustainable development: Theoretical framework and application to the mining sector

With particular reference to mining projects, this chapter discusses how assessment should be undertaken to ensure that the planning and decision- making process is directed towards sustainable development (SD)/ sustainability. It is organised into two main parts. First, the literature is reviewed to identify the features commonly promoted for enhancing impact assessment as a decision-support tool in support of SD, in other words, sustainability assessment (SA). Second, this theoretical framework is evaluated in relation to the mining sector by establishing the extent to which its features have been applied to mining projects in Canada, Namibia and South Africa. In this analysis, particular lessons are drawn with regard to the concept of ‘strategicness’, which, together with ‘comprehensiveness’ and ‘integratedness’, is a key feature that distinguishes SA from established forms of assessment