Withdrawal of non-freshwater (seawater) has less environmental impact than withdrawal of freshwater and has therefore been presented separately in the current period report. Overall, consumption of freshwater shows a progressive decrease.
Consumption of freshwater is decreasing and the consumption of non-freshwater increasing. The change in the water intake rate in 2005 was influenced by a dip in total sales in 2005.
There is a trend toward increasing sourcing from seawater as a replacement to freshwater input.
A reduced number of hectares was rehabilitated in 2004 and 2005 due to early rainfall preventing rehabilitation at one of the major bauxite mining operations.
