Application of ecologically sustainable development principles to mining in Western Australia: The Windimurra Vanadium Project

Today, mining is seen by many in the world community as one of the greatest threats to ecosystems and water resources worldwide. Irrespective of the accuracy of this opinion, clearly both for perceptual and practical reasons the application of Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD) to mining is an important and necessary step for the mining industry. This paper presents a summary of a dissertation which explored the relationship between extractive mining and ESD in Western Australia (Beckingham, 2000). This was done using the Windimurra Vanadium Project as a case study. The Windimurra Vanadium Project is located approximately 80kin southeast of Mt Magnet and was constructed by Vanadium Australia in 1999 at a cost of approximately $A120 million. The analysis of the Windimurra Vanadium Project utilises ESD issues identified in the Mining, Minerals and Sustainable Development Project Draft Action Plan for Australia (Solomon & Lovel, 2000), the Commonwealth's National Strategy for ESD (Commonwealth of Australia, 1992) and the Australian Conservation Foundation's Arid Lands Policy (ACF, 1991). The analysis is presented under the premise that mining companies are now viewing ESD as not only an essential next step for the industry, but also a must in order to remain competitive. The results of the analysis highlight the high degree of overlap between the current environmental management practices at the Windimurra Vanadium Project with ESD principles. There are, however, several key issues that are not explored in this paper including indigenous and women's issues. The Windimurra Vanadium Project now sets a world benchmark for environmental impact and management associated with vanadium processing. A small number of additional areas for further application of ESD principles were revealed through Beckingham. (2000). The high degree of conformance with ESD principles for the Windimurra Vanadium Project is attributed to project-specific variables, that include the regulatory framework of Western Australia, the financial strength of the company and the commitment of the personnel involved. It is an important finding that the Windimurra Vanadium Project has achieved the majority of the principles of ESD without being conducted under a specific ESD policy. It is considered however, that in order to maximise Vanadium Australia's potential to apply ESD principles, a commitment to ESD would need ta appear as an over-arching aim in their Environmental Policy and other corporate policies. With this in place it is considered that Vanadium Australia's management would be more likely to explore the possibilities of ESD application and to provide strategic direction in new project developments. Finally it is noteworthy to add that an associated off-shoot of Beckingham (2000) was to, identify the potential for Vanadium Australia to on-sell its calcine waste (0.8mtpa) based on its iron content, which would be by far the biggest single recycling project in Western Australia.