Alcoa (NYSE:AA) will pay A$55 million (about $38.9 million) to restore areas of native forest it cleared without authorization in Western Australia for bauxite mining, the country’s environment ministry said Wednesday.
The penalty relates to nearly 2,100 hectares (5,190 acres) of land in the Northern Jarrah Forest, located south of Perth, that were cleared between 2019 and 2025 without obtaining the required government approvals.
Officials described the payment as “unprecedented,” noting it is the largest remediation sum of its kind. The funds will support conservation initiatives, including environmental offsets, programs aimed at protecting endangered black cockatoos that nest in jarrah trees, and efforts to improve the management of invasive species.
Alcoa said it had operated in line with Australian law but agreed to the payment to address past land-clearing activities.
The company has been mining bauxite—the primary ore used to produce aluminum—in Western Australia since the 1960s and has cleared roughly 28,000 hectares (69,000 acres) of the state’s jarrah forest. Of Alcoa’s approximately 5,500 employees nationwide, around 4,300 are based in Western Australia.
Public opposition to Alcoa’s forest-clearing practices has intensified, particularly regarding its environmental impact on the world’s only jarrah forests. A recent proposal to clear an additional 11,500 hectares drew a record 59,000 public submissions to the state’s environmental regulator.
According to the environment ministry, the government is conducting a strategic review to assess the cumulative environmental effects of Alcoa’s current and proposed mining operations through 2045.
During the review process, Alcoa will be permitted to clear “limited land” for up to 18 months under a national interest exemption, intended to ensure ongoing bauxite supply. The company has also committed an additional A$4.2 million in environmental offsets linked to activities covered by the exemption.
“We are committed to responsible operations and welcome this important step in transitioning our approvals to a contemporary assessment process that provides increased certainty for our operations and our people into the future,” Alcoa CEO William Oplinger said in a statement.