Enhancing biodiversity and ecosystem services data quality for environmental management: towards a framework to increase transparency in impact assessment follow-up for mines

Data and information are critical elements for environmental and social impact management, connecting monitoring in the follow-up stage to the decision-making process. The mining sector, associated with multiple environmental and social impacts, has adopted targets of No Net Loss on biodiversity, demanding reliable data to demonstrate its achievement. In this context, this study’s research question is ‘What are the building blocks of a framework to ensure data quality in impact assessment follow-up of mining to advance biodiversity and ecosystem-services management?’ A literature search was used to identify existing data quality frameworks, as well as key issues of biodiversity and ecosystem services related to impact assessment follow-up, combined into a conceptual model. By discussing it with practitioners of a bauxite mining in the Brazilian Amazon, we gathered perspectives that contributed to define building blocks of a framework and identified issues for its adoption, such as adding workload to the already numerous existing processes for impact management. We argue that initial actions of standardization and data management could enhance data quality and create conditions to gradual adoption of the framework. This paper also concludes about the importance of transparency, including disclosure about data quality, to promote convergence of licensing requirements and adaptive management.