WA State government approves destruction of irreplaceable numbat and cockatoo jarrah forest habitat, Federal Environment Minister decision still to come

• The WA government approvals could give way to the disturbance of over 100,000 hectares of land and forest for bauxite mining
• WA Environment Minister has approved South32’s mining to continue until 2075

• Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek now has until early February 2025 to accept or reject the proposal, and potentially put further conditions on it

Late on Friday 20 December, The WA Environment Minister Reece Whitby MLA approved plans by South32, a bauxite mining company, to destroy a significant part of the Northern Jarrah Forest, home to endangered woylies, numbats and black cockatoos. Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek now has until early February 2025 to accept or reject the proposal, and potentially put further conditions on it.

The approvals could give way to the disturbance of over 100,000 hectares of land and forest for bauxite mining, an area over 50 times the size of Perth city. Under this approval, South32 could bulldoze up to 24 cockatoo nesting trees and over 4,000 hectares of their habitat even as their populations are collapsing.

The Northern Jarrah Forest is a unique and ancient global biodiversity hotspot, with thousands of plants and animals found nowhere else on Earth, including the Ngolyenok/ Carnaby's cockatoo and the quokka.

Deforestation for bauxite mining by South32 and Alcoa has already ripped apart vast swathes of the Jarrah. It destroys habitat for critically endangered species, puts Perth’s drinking water at risk and worsens climate change. Footage recently released by the Wilderness Society shows the devastation that lies in the wake of bauxite mining.

Strikingly, the WA Environment Minister has approved South32’s mining to continue until 2075 - but this delicate ecosystem can’t afford the destruction.

The WA Environment Protection Authority (EPA) and Environment Minister have asked South32 to rehabilitate mined areas and “counterbalance” their impacts. Yet these forests are irreplaceable - their destruction simply cannot be offset.

A decision on South32’s plans, by Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek, will come early 2025. The Federal Government has committed to no new species extinctions, and pledged to protect 30% of Australia’s land and oceans and halt and reverse deforestation by 2030. It now has an opportunity to work towards these commitments by rejecting South32’s proposal.

Leading conservation organisation, the Wilderness Society, says these globally significant forests cannot afford more destruction, and the South32 proposal needs to be rejected.

“This recent approval by the WA Environment Minister is yet another example of why Australia needs new nature laws and a Federal EPA to close deforestation loopholes and hold corporations accountable to their destruction” says Adele Chasson, Manager of Corporate Advocacy and Engagement at the Wilderness Society.

“This approval, announced during the evening of the Friday before Christmas, seems to have been timed to avoid public scrutiny by communities across the Northern Jarrah Forest and beyond who want to see these forests protected.

“The Federal Government now needs to stay true to its commitments to no new extinctions and ending deforestation, and reject South32’s horrific plans to destroy vital cockatoo nesting trees , and critically endangered woylie and numbat habitat.

The Wilderness Society calls on Governments to work towards establishing a network of protected areas across the ecosystem, in joint agreement with Noongar First Nations. Together with our allies the Western Australian Forest Alliance, local communities in Boddington, Dwellingup and Jarrahdale, the Wilderness Society is working to protect the Northern Jarrah Forests.

For interviews with Adele Chasson, Manager of Corporate Advocacy and Engagement, please contact Rhiannon Cunningham, media adviser for the Wilderness Society on 0419 992 760.