Sept. 17, 2007 Alcoa is slashing carbon emissions at its Kwinana alumina refinery in Western Australia thanks to an innovative new carbon sequestration technology, according to the company's 2006 sustainability report (PDF) for Australia.

Alcoa's Carbon Capture system, launched last May, mixes bauxite residue, a by-product of the aluminum-making process, with carbon dioxide, thereby locking up CO2 that would otherwise be released to the atmosphere. The company estimates that in the course of one year, the Kwinana carbon capture plant will lock up around 70,000 tons of CO2, the equivalent of taking 17,000 cars off the road.

Alcoa, a member of the U.S. Climate Action Partnership, says it plans to share the technology within the aluminum industry.