For a Planning Application by Aughinish Alumina Limited for development at existing alumina facility
Note: this is a large (749 page) EIA report
The proposed development comprises of:
- An expansion of the Bauxite Residue Disposal Area (BRDA) to increase its disposal capacity in order to accommodate additional bauxite residue resulting in a proposed increase in height of c.12m (to c. 44m OD) above the currently permitted levels. No increase to the existing footprint of the BRDA is proposed.
- An extension to the existing Salt Cake Disposal Cell (SCDC) to accommodate further disposal of salt cake resulting in an increase in height of the cell by c.2.25m. The SCDC is located within the BRDA area.
- An extension of the permitted borrow pit2, located to the east of the BRDA, is also proposed. This extension proposes to increase the footprint of the borrow pit from c.4.5ha to c.8.4ha. This extension will provide an additional 380,000m3 of rock fill material which is needed to satisfy the requirements of the construction and operation of the BRDA.
- The continued use of an existing stockpile area at the south east of the subject site to store topsoil in order to satisfy the additional restoration requirements of the extended BRDA.
- Upgrades to the existing water management infrastructure to accommodate the BRDA development to Stage 16 which will also allow for greater Inflow Design Flood (IDF) capacity for the entirety of the BRDA.