EL 3350 Howard Island Annual and final report for the period ending 19 October 2016

Abstract

EL 3350 on Howard Island, East Arnhem Land was initially granted in October 2014 after traditional owners provided consent for bauxite exploration following a period of punctuated consultation dating back to 1981. Exploration programmes aimed to test whether bauxite occurrences on the eastern side of Elcho Island, reported by Plumb (1965), have analogies on Howard Island and whether the occurrences are indications of a significant deposit of marketable bauxite. Preliminary geological reconnaissance, which included the collection and analysis of samples of float, provided only limited encouragement and a vacuum drilling programme aimed to better test the laterite thickness and alumina grade across the license area. The drilling programme failed to find indications of marketable bauxite and interpretation of results suggests that any significant bauxite deposits that may have existed on the island have been eroded.