Alcoa's Bauxite mining on the Darling Range in the southwest of WA for the years 2022 to 2026 & 2023 to 2027

Overview

The Western Australian Forest Alliance Inc has referred two proposals to the EPA for Alcoa’s bauxite mining activities on the Darling Range in the southwest of Western Australia. The first is for the period spanning 2022 to 2026 and the second is for 2023 to 2027. 

The referred activities occur within Alcoa’s Mineral Lease 1SA (ML1SA) and are documented in annual rolling five-year Mining and Management Programs (MMPs) required under a State Agreement Act framework. The 2022-26 MMP was approved, subject to exclusions, through the State Agreement Act framework in September 2022, and this proposal is currently being implemented. A 2023-27 MMP has not yet been approved. 

The proposals include mining at Huntly and Willowdale mines, located approximately 70 km and 110 km south of Perth respectively. The proposals include, but are not limited to: 

• Clearing of native vegetation 

• Establishment of haul roads and other infrastructure and use of existing infrastructure 

• Operations associated with the mining, crushing and screening of bauxite ore 

• Transport of ore including by conveyor 

• Exploration activities 

• Rehabilitation activities 

For clarity, the proposals do not include processing of bauxite ore to alumina which occurs at the Pinjarra, Wagerup and Kwinana refineries subject to separate regulatory instruments approved under the Environmental Protection Act 1986 (EP Act). 

Section 38B of the EP Act provides that a proposal cannot be referred to the EPA more than once. In considering these referrals, the EPA has undertaken investigations and enquiries to identify whether the proposals have been previously referred to the EPA, and notes that the proposals constitute areas and activities that have been found to be not previously referred. 

Why your views matter

At this initial stage, comment is only sought on whether or not the EPA should assess the proposals and, if so, what level of assessment is considered appropriate

What happens next

Following the seven day public comment period and consideration of any comments received, the EPA will decide, for each proposal, whether or not it requires environmental impact assessment and, if so, what level of assessment will be applied. 

The EPA’s decisions on level of assessment are released each Monday on the EPA’s website.