Western Australia’s Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) has decided not to formally assess a proposed expansion of the Lake MacLeod Solar Salt Operation, concluding that the environmental impacts are localised and can be effectively managed through existing regulatory frameworks.
Lake MacLeod Pty Ltd. had proposed to double production at the site from 1.5 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) to 3 Mtpa by 2027.
Located approximately 50 kilometres north of Carnarvon in the Gascoyne region, the expansion sits well within the site’s currently approved Prescribed Premises Licence limit of 6.1 Mtpa. The project has operated under a State Agreement since the 1960s.
The expansion involves a total disturbance footprint of up to 387.1 hectares, of which 100 hectares is already disturbed, within a broader 653-hectare development envelope. Key works include building new salt crystalliser ponds, relocating a northern flood levee, and establishing two construction borrow pits.
Public interest focused heavily on the protection of Lake MacLeod’s highly ecological northern ponds, which are eligible for international Ramsar wetland listing.
However, the EPA determined that because the expansion is separated by 38 kilometres from these permanent saline wetlands, significant impacts are highly unlikely.
To ensure long-term protection, the EPA issued public advice recommending future conservation estate inclusion and a coordinated management framework for the lake.
The EPA’s assessment found that the project will require clearing no more than 43 hectares of native vegetation, which is currently in poor, degraded condition and free from threatened flora. Furthermore, the construction will hydrologically isolate up to 900 hectares of intermittent surface water area due to levee relocation.
While this represents a potential loss of temporary migratory shorebird habitat during major flood events, it constitutes just 0.05 per cent of the total 188,145-hectare lake surface.
The EPA ruled that these minor, proportionate impacts can be properly regulated via standard native vegetation clearing permits and existing state water and heritage legislation.
