JSW uses Slovakian solutions

Alcoa (ASX: AAI) contractor JSW Drilling has looked to the mountains of Europe to develop exploration drilling operations in the Northern Jarrah Forest of WA that will have the lowest possible environmental impact.

Drawing inspiration from specialised Slovakian-made forestry equipment, JSW have developed innovative drilling rigs for low-impact forest drilling. The company refined then customised a cab chassis specifically for Alcoa’s minimalist impact needs.

The cab and custom-made drill control station are equipped with protective features designed in accordance with Australian forestry standards and Alcoa’s operational requirements, ensuring enhanced safety and risk mitigation in forested environments.

The chassis has the unique ability to both oscillate and articulate, meaning the machines can rotate and turn tightly to navigate around trees.

They also have high clearance to move over and around fallen logs and other obstacles whilst maintaining a low centre of gravity to provide exceptional stability.

JSW executive general manager Steve Payne says that the company implemented innovative solutions to navigate the terrain of the Northern jarrah forest safely and efficiently.

“These machines are light weight, agile and capable of handling the forest terrain,” he said.

“We import the cab chassis then fit our custom designed drills, making further extensive modifications at our premises at Bibra Lake, south of Perth, so these rigs can move easily between trees and over fallen logs while minimising disturbance to undergrowth and soil structure.

“It’s quite hard to locate these machines in the forest because they don’t leave obvious tracks.

“In some cases, you can look back at the path a rig has just driven, and you can’t even tell where it’s been.”

There are multiple steps between identifying drill targets and commencing drilling operations, designed to further reduce impact.

Unlike some other common forms of exploration drilling, which involve bulldozing areas to allow larger rigs to move in straight lines, the JSW rigs weave between trees and other significant obstacles.

Due to the machine’s large tyres, high clearance and light overall weight, undergrowth is pushed into a flat position, that allows it to typically bounce back once the rig is moved.

Alcoa exploration superintendent Peter Hill says that while drill patterns are designed on a grid basis, the protection of flora and fauna habitat and other significant features takes precedence.

“While areas we drill have been logged previously, we always start by identifying and then avoiding any significant features,” he said.

“Biological survey teams come into new exploration areas we’ve identified for drilling to identify significant attributes for protection including fauna habitat and stream zone vegetation.

“Buffer zones are placed around any such areas and drill plans are updated to ensure the protected areas are avoided.

“Drilling teams are also trained to help identify key environmental features as they move through the forest and are required to give them a wide berth.

“If a drill hole happens to be too close to any trees or areas that can’t be accessed in a low-impact way, they move or skip those holes.

“It means we’re practically leaving no trace when we do our exploration drilling.”