Hotham Mining Extension and Refinery Production Increase

Overview

South32 Worsley Alumina Pty Ltd currently operates the Boddington Bauxite Mine and the Worsley Alumina Refinery. The new proposal is to extend the current mining area to incorporate adjacent areas; referred to as the Hotham Mining Extension. Additionally, it is proposed to increase the overall production of alumina at the refinery from 4.7 Mtpa to 5.1 Mtpa.

The new bauxite mining area is located approximately 8 km west-south-west of the town of Boddington and the alumina refinery is located approximately 15 km north-west of the town of Collie, in the South-West Region.

The proposed mining extension involves an increase of the mining footprint by approximately 1200 ha which includes clearing of up to 350 ha of native vegetation, and two haul road crossings over the Hotham River.

Why your views matter

At this initial stage of the EIA process, comment is simply sought on whether or not the EPA should assess a proposal 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 whether or not this proposal 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.