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Aluminium giant committed to green growth

By Chen Jialu (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-04-07 11:19

At Chinalco's Aurukun bauxite mining construction site in Queensland, Australia, the future partially rests on the number of turtles that have crawled across the area in a select period of time.

The endangered turtles are a crucial part of the Chinese company's A$3 billion ($2.58 billion) project environmental assessment test.

The Aurukun bauxite project is the largest investment by a Chinese company in Australia but if the number of turtles decreases after several months of monitoring, the deal could be off.

Aluminum Corporation of China (Chinalco), a global non-ferrous metal heavyweight made headlines last year for its blockbuster overseas acquisitions. It has pledged to environmental protection and energy conservation at home and abroad.

The turtle census is only one part of the environmental report card. It will take two years to conduct the full comprehensive test to see whether Chinalco's mining plan will damage the environment and affect its ecological balance and diversity.

"If we are there, we have a commitment to the local community, so we should take a responsible stance for local environment protection," says Lu Yongqing, vice-president of Chinalco, the nation's largest aluminum and alumina maker.

Last year when State-owned Chinalco signed the agreement with the government of Queensland, Australia, to develop the bauxite mining project, some Australian activists challenged the project's environmental impact, arguing that China is seeking to transfer a high-pollution industry overseas.

In response, Lu gave a speech titled "Green growth in Harmony" at an Australian mining club clarifying how Chinalco, as well as China, is committed to emission controls and environmental protection. Lu says his speech was warmly received.

"Our overseas projects will not bring pollution to the local environment, but will instead contribute to the development of the local economy," Lu says.

Bauxite is refined into alumina, which is smelted into aluminum.

China has become the world's largest aluminum products maker and consumer, but China's bauxite resources only account for 2 percent of the world total.

China's imported bauxite accounts for one-third of the country's total reserves, according to Chinalco.

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