Pilbara Iron beefs up the future

Raising cattle is an unusual sideline for one of the world's biggest mining companies, but six cattle stations and more than one million hectares of prime beef pasturage is playing a key role in the long term operations and growth of Pilbara Iron.

The six agricultural holdings are strategically located around the company's mining operations, where they will be able to provide easy access to future mining leases, rail corridors and the port of Dampier.

Far from simply an insurance policy for the mines, the stations make an important contribution to Western Australia's agricultural industry, sponsoring research into sustainable land management techniques and sharing vital production and environmental information with government agencies and other pastoralists in the region.

A long term herd improvement programme has been implemented to breed animals which are resistant to adverse seasonal conditions and to satisfy growing consumer demand for high quality, organic meat.

Matt Herbert has been the manager of the Hamersley, Juna Downs, Karratha and Rocklea stations since December 1991. The Hamersley property covers a vast area of 300,000 hectares and Rocklea a further 395,000 hectares. The Juna Downs, Karratha, Yalleen and Yarralloola stations are smaller. All six properties are commercial beef producers.

Matt has spent most of his 39 years in the pastoral industry, operating cattle properties in the Pilbara, supplemented by some contract work in the mining industry.

"I've been with Rio Tinto for 14 years and I still enjoy the daily challenges of this job," he said.

"I like the wide open spaces and the fact that there are not too many people around. Life can sometimes be pretty tough, with drought and other natural disasters, but I haven't any control over those."

A team of about 12 employees operates and maintains the stations and manages the stock and breeding programmes.

Most of the cattle is exported live, depending on markets and prices, and the animals are shipped from the station to feedlots for sale to local and international buyers. Price plays a key role in stock planning and there is healthy market demand for good quality produce.

"This year started out being very dry. The fact that we'd had no rain since April 2004 presented challenges regarding the sale of livestock. I decided to value-add this year by sending stock to feedlots and to pasture in the south of the state," Matt said.

The station team includes a staff of both men and women, with many employees having young families. Women are often employed to muster on horseback and most workers have been trained on the job. A sophisticated occupational safety system is in place which reflects the high standards of safety management operating throughout Pilbara Iron.

"Our main safety risks are associated with driving and working with livestock. These are all managed by annual training, competency-based training, safety meetings and other similar tools," Matt said.

A normal working day on the land usually starts around 6 am and covers an eight or 12 hour shift, depending on the season. "Maintenance is generally carried out during the summer months, between October and March, and mustering is in between. We often employ five or six extra people for mustering livestock." The isolation and long days can mean a limited social life for many of those working on the stations. 

Like mining, the station business has to contend with significant environmental challenges. A key issue is the need to balance stock numbers on the property, to protect the sustainability of the land and preserve feed and water resources, which change constantly with the weather. Cyclone season is a perennial concern for people living in the north west. Yet the Pilbara stations have been relatively free of cyclone damage for the past few years. "Cyclone Monty caused erosion problems at Karratha Station, and a lot of fence damage to all the properties. Fortunately, we haven't suffered any building damage or other major problems for quite a few years," said Matt.

All stations follow an environmental management plan, which is overseen by environmental specialist Nev Havelberg. "Environmental management covers a range of areas, including bio-security, and monitoring animal health and numbers, rainfall, fire and water quality," Nev said.