In 2025, the global mining industry made meaningful progress in tailings governance, while a series of failures served as sobering reminders of the risks that remain. Adoption of the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM) continued to accelerate among major operators, underscoring a persistent reality: governance frameworks alone do not prevent disasters: they must be implemented, monitored, and independently assessed in practice.
According to the International Council on Mining and Metals’ (ICMM) 2025 Tailings Progress Report, 67% of member facilities have now achieved full compliance with GISTM, rising to more than 80% at ‘extreme’ and ‘very high’ consequence facilities. These figures reflect genuine progress, particularly in elevating tailings governance to board-level accountability. However, one-third of facilities remain only partially compliant, and most assessments are still self-declared.
From voluntary standards to accountable practice
“This is where the next phase of tailings governance must focus,” says Alastair Bovim, CEO of environmental intelligence company Insight Terra.
“Standards are essential, but independent audits supported by reliable data are what build trust and prevent failure.”
The events of 2025 reinforced this point. Tailings storage facility (TSF) incidents were recorded across multiple jurisdictions, often under conditions of extreme rainfall, rapid operational expansion or legacy design constraints. Investigations repeatedly highlighted insufficient real-time visibility, delayed responses to early warning signs, and fragmented accountability.
Climate and water risk bring tailings into sharper focus
Climate variability is amplifying these risks, with more intense rainfall and changing hydrological patterns placing additional strain on TSFs not designed for today’s conditions. As a result, water management has emerged as one of the most critical and often under-apppreciated components of tailings risk.
“Net zero ambitions will not be met if mines cannot proactively manage water,” Bovim notes. “TFSs are dynamic systems, and water is the primary driver of instability. Without continuous monitoring of pore pressures, seepage, deformation and surrounding catchments, operators are effectively managing blind.”
Against this backdrop, the formal launch of the Global Tailings Management Institute (GTMI) represents a significant structural shift. The GTMI will oversee independent auditing and certification against GISTM, moving the industry beyond voluntary self-assessment.
Technology is central to enabling this shift. Integrated monitoring systems that combine ground-based instrumentation, IoT sensor networks, satellite observations and InSAR analytics deliver near-real-time visibility across TSF footprints. These systems provide engineers of record and operators with early warning, enabling intervention before conditions escalate into failure.
“Tailings management is moving from a periodic reporting model to a continuous assurance model,” Bovim says.
“Environmental intelligence allows operators to detect subtle changes early, validate design assumptions over time and demonstrate compliance in a way that static inspections cannot.”
Shift From reaction to predictive prevention
Looking ahead to 2026, industry attention will increasingly turn to closing partial-compliance gaps, embedding independent assurance into routine operations, and scaling integrated monitoring across both new and legacy facilities.
“If mineral demand is rising, our tailings governance systems must mature just as quickly,” Bovim concludes. “The tools now exist to move from reactive response to predictive prevention. The challenge is to apply them consistently, at scale, and without delay.”