IGO SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

Progressive rehabilitation has multiple benefits, including minimising the environmental impact on the areas in which we conduct our work programs, however, we do not always get this right. Fulfilling our progressive rehabilitation obligations is particularly challenging for our exploration team, given the size of our projects and the large number of tenements that are actively managed. In FY20 we refocused our efforts on progressive rehabilitation of our exploration sites, following extensive land clearing campaigns to undertake geophysical and drilling activities in the Fraser Range in past financial years. Environmental Impact Assessment To minimise and manage the impact of our activities, we proactively complete environmental and social impact assessments, in line with our Group Environmental Standard 2. We then actively plan work in consultation with other land owners (e.g., Traditional Owners or pastoralists), with regard to the flora and fauna likely to be affected, the potential for the accidental introduction of pest species, the potential for the accidental disturbance of ethnographic sites of significance, soil disturbance, and prompt remediation once access is no longer required. During FY20, we completed a large- scale Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) across all our exploration activities within the Fraser Range Project. The outcomes of the EIA provided IGO with a framework and process that enables us to properly assess and manage the risks associated with our exploration activities. It has been adopted as an ongoing management tool for assessing, managing and mitigating our impacts, particularly in regard to land clearing and rehabilitation. Ongoing impact monitoring As a matter of normal practice and in line with our EIA guidelines, we complete ongoing impact monitoring at all our operations. At a minimum, our monitoring will continue until we have a firm understanding of: • the total area of land disturbed or otherwise impacted by our activities; • changes to ecosystem function, and the composition of flora and fauna present within our operational areas; • changes to the socio-economic circumstances of our host communities; and • the adequacy of our impact controls or mitigation activities. Protecting biodiversity IGO are privileged to work in some of Australia’s most unique and remote regions, with important biological, ecological and cultural heritage values. We are committed to contributing to the conservation of biodiversity and seek to understand and protect the flora and fauna at all our operations. Nova Operation and Fraser Range Our Nova Operation and exploration activities in the Fraser Range are situated within the Great Western Woodlands (GWW), the largest relatively untouched temperate woodland left on Earth. The GWW covers almost 16 million hectares (about two and a half times the size of Tasmania) and co-exists with more than 300 mines, 5,000 tenements and pastoral leases that cover about 20 per cent of the area. Field studies conducted within the Nova Operation during its feasibility phase found a total of 45 vegetation communities, comprising 28 eucalypt woodland communities, 13 mixed shrublands and shrub communities, and four hammock grassland communities. A total of 142 vertebrate fauna species, including 40 reptile, 82 bird and 20 mammal species were recorded. The Nova Operation area represents 0.03 per cent of the GWW’s total area. Northern parts of our Fraser Range exploration project area fall within the Plumridge Lakes Class A Nature Reserve, although we do not operate on these tenements. Several tenements in the southern part of the project are located within the Dundas Nature Reserve and proposed Lake Harris Nature Reserve. IGO operates under approved Conservation Management Plans and our internal EIA guidelines when working in these nature reserves. Lake Mackay Our Lake Mackay Project is located 400km west-north-west of Alice Springs and sits within the Great Sandy Desert Bioregion of WA and the NT, which has a temperate-subtropical climate and consists primarily of red dunefields and sandplains supporting Triodia hummock grasslands, Acacia shrublands, and open eucalypt or Allocasuarina woodlands. Our practices at Lake Mackay are targeted at minimising impacts across our entire tenure. During FY20, we completed a desktop biological assessment to better understand the environmental values of the study area and the likelihood of occurrence of significant species and communities. The assessment, which characterised the flora, vegetation and fauna values that may be impacted by future exploration or development activities, has informed our environmental management approach for the project. Kimberley IGO acquired significant exploration tenure in the west and east Kimberley region in FY20. The Kimberley region is highly regarded around the world and regularly attracts international and national level interest from diverse stakeholders, primarily because of its status as a highly valued cultural heritage and environmental area, and tourist destination. We are acutely aware of the significant land access challenges and biological significance of the region, which needs to be well understood before embarking on any activity which could affect IGO’s social licence to operate. Consequently, we completed a Kimberley Land Access desktop review in FY20 to understand the environmental values of the region and stakeholder sentiment insights, to inform a future Land Access strategy. Understanding sentiment insights and the values of specific stakeholders is crucial to ensuring the community and other key stakeholders are informed and engaged. There were a number of key recommendations from the Land Access review and we will begin to implement them during FY21. Tropicana Operation The Tropicana Operation is located on the western edge of the Great Victoria Desert, considered to be the largest desert in Australia. It contains a number of protected reserves including Plumridge Lakes Nature Reserve and Queen Victoria Springs Nature Reserve. It is situated in an area of high biological significance and is subject to an integrated conservation management strategy which was developed to ensure that flora and fauna are protected. The Tropicana Operation has implemented a threatened species management strategy to identify potential risks and mitigate impacts to threatened species. The Tropicana Operation is located on a culturally significant region for Traditional Owners of the land including the Wongatha and Spinifex peoples. As party to the Tropicana Joint Venture, Federal Ministerial Approval (EPBC 2008/4270) for the Tropicana Joint Venture Gold Project included the requirement for the establishment of a Conservation Trust as part of the Project's biodiversity offsets strategy. The trust, known as the Great Victoria Desert Biodiversity Trust, was established to deliver benefit to the Great Victoria Desert through the provision of funds connected to the offset strategy. The trust represents a new structure of offset delivery and operates as a unique partnership model between industry and government. Invasive pest species Invasive species are animals, plants, parasites or disease- causing organisms that establish themselves outside their natural range and become pests. Invasive species have a major impact on Australia’s environment, threatening biodiversity, and reducing overall species abundance and diversity. They represent one of the more potent, persistent and widespread threats to the environment. Within the context of the locations in which IGO operates in Australia, the key invasive pest species include the feral cat (Felis catus) and European Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) , and plant species Onion Weed (Asphodelus fistulosus) , Ward’s Weed (Carrichtera annua) , Maltese Cockspur (Centaurea melitensis) , Marsh Mallow (Malva parviflora) and Doublegee (Rumex hypogaeus) . Predation by cats and red foxes has contributed to the extinction of many mammals in Australia, and this pressure continues to contribute to the decline of threatened mammals. During FY20, we completed limited feral cat trapping activities at our Nova Operation. We also continued to support the trial of the Felixer, a cat trapping innovation, that employs sensors and advanced algorithms to automatically identify feral cats and foxes by their unique shape and instantaneously administer a poison onto their fur. Going forward we will complete a study to better understand the population dynamics of the feral cat population. Although none of the weed species found at the Nova Operation are listed as Declared Pests or are Weeds of National Significance, we complete regular weed management activities. Activities include weed monitoring, control spraying and weed hygiene inspections on all earth-moving machinery brought onto site or on exploration projects. Research and conservation programs IGO have an ongoing commitment to fund or contribute to environmental and biodiversity research programs. Some of the programs we continued to support in FY20 include: • Curtin University Topsoil Health study, determining how the diversity, abundance and activity of soil microbes within topsoil stockpiles is influenced by factors such as storage time; • Curtin University eDNA Fauna Research Project; • our ongoing collaboration with not-for-profit company Thylation, to support the development of the Felixer prototype to manage feral cat populations. Read more in our FY19 Sustainability Report; and • various collaborations in the innovation and technology space that will ultimately result in improved environmental outcomes. Read more on page 90. EDNA FAUNA RESEARCH PROJECT AT THE NOVA OPERATION Understanding the impacts on fauna at our mining operations can be challenging. The diverse array of mammals, reptiles and birds in the Great Western Woodlands and associated low densities make monitoring their numbers and range difficult. The open nature of the region also means numerous species of mammals, reptiles, and birds rely on hollow trees and logs as habitat for breeding and shelter. This makes them vulnerable to the impacts of land clearing, which is often required for mining and exploration. IGO, in collaboration with Curtin University and the Australian Centre for Mine Site Restoration, undertook a project to integrate camera traps and environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling to monitor how fauna use tree and log hollows as habitat around our Nova Operation. eDNA was incorporated as an effective and rapid monitoring tool that is less resource intensive compared to traditional site-specific methods such as trapping, mark-recapture techniques and radio-collaring. In our study, a range of hollow trees and logs were identified across two sampling locations: • the first site is 5km from our operations and had been disturbed by our mining activities; and • the second site is further away, around 25km from Nova, and relatively untouched. By having two separate locations, we can better determine the differences in fauna behaviour between a disturbed setting and a pristine habitat. Soil samples were taken from both the entrance and inside a range of hollow trees and logs, with motion sensor cameras set up facing the entrance. The soil samples were analysed for eDNA such as exoskeletons, faeces or other secretions; the motion sensor cameras recorded any movement of fauna into the hollows. These two sampling methods are being cross-referenced to determine what fauna have been using the hollows. When completed in December 2020, we anticipate that the study will help us better understand the fauna populations at Nova and the best ways to successfully manage and rehabilitate areas throughout our operational phase and during closure. 54 — IGO SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020 IGO SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020— 55 RESPONSIBLE OPERATIONS