In a significant win for community campaigners, American mining giant Alcoa has officially abandoned its controversial plans to conduct exploration drilling for bauxite in the cherished Perth Hills region.
Updated Mining Plan Excludes Key Shires
The company announced a revised mining strategy on Monday, which outlines its operations through to 2029. The updated plan explicitly removes proposed exploration sites within the local government areas of Armadale, Kalamunda, Mundaring, Beverley, and York. This decision effectively ends a two-year environmental battle that raised serious concerns about the impact of bauxite mining on the state's water supply and the adequacy of land rehabilitation.
This move comes as Alcoa also confirmed the permanent closure of its ageing Kwinana alumina refinery. The shutdown was attributed partly to the company's inability to access higher-grade ore deposits due to the ongoing environmental disputes. Its other refineries located at Wagerup and Pinjarra will continue to operate.
Community Pressure Leads to Corporate Backdown
The abandoned drilling sites had been identified in two key mining plans: one for 2023 to 2027, which is still awaiting approval from the Environmental Protection Authority, and a subsequent plan for 2025 to 2029, which was soon to be presented to State Development Minister Roger Cook.
Kane Moyle, Alcoa's regulatory approvals director, stated that the decision was a direct response to feedback from the community. "While exploration drilling is a low-impact activity and does not indicate an intention to mine an area but rather to broaden geological knowledge of the region, we understand the strong environmental and social values of the Perth Hills to local communities and the broader public," Mr Moyle said in an official statement.
Bauxite is a key raw material processed into alumina, which is then exported and smelted to produce aluminium – a versatile metal used in everything from household refrigerators to advanced fighter jets.
