Papua's Rivers
p. 77 · Read in the full issue
[?]Ss Of Bauxite
Cape York
Aluminium Industry and Papua's Rivers
IHE announcement in December F that the existence of huge quantities of bauxite had been Dved in the Cape York Peninsula »a of Australia is of importance l the Australian Territory of ,pua. rhe development of a plan to mess the great rivers which flow >m Central New Guinea into the ilf of Papua, so as to provide issive quantities of hydro-electric wer, has been going on for years, igineers are working on it now, der the direction of the anmonwealth Government and itish aluminium interests.
Die production of aluminium, on f economic basis, calls for huge Dduction of hydro-electric power, der conditions which give an limited fall of water in a country suited for close settlement. The messing of rivers in this way, [the western part of Canada, was e foundation of the aluminium lustry there. [t had been intended, originally, [bring the ore (bauxite) to the ipuan Gulf from Australia’s irthern Territory; but that scheme nns to have been modified pause of Australia’s high wage tes, and the last announcement is that the bauxite would come )m Borneo.
But if there is this mass of iuxite in Cape York (across irres Strait, almost within sight the Gulf of Papua) it would seem at all the factors now are present 1* the establishment of the Papuan uminium industry. However, Cape )rk is still Australian territory; id Australia’s fantastic wage rates le in Cape York as in the Mrthern Territory. That could be dislocating factor in an otherwise
rfect set-up.