The Environmental Protection Authority of Western Australia has recommended ministerial approval for Moly Mines's Spinifex Ridge project in the Pilbara.
With an expected mine life of more than 20 years, Spinifex Ridge will be one of the largest metalliferous mining operations in Australia.
The full announcement is pasted below:
Moly Mines Ltd advises the Environmental Protection Authority of Western Australia (EPA) has today released their EPA bulletin which contains the EPA's report and recommendations to the Minister for the Environment on the Spinifex Ridge Molybdenum Project proposal.
Section 44 of the Environmental Protection Act 1986 (EPA Act) requires the EPA to report to the Minister for the Environment the outcome of its assessment of a proposal. The report must set out:
- the key environmental factors identified in the course of the assessment; and
- the EPA's recommendations as to whether or not the proposal may be implemented, and, if the EPA recommends that implementation be allowed, the conditions and procedures to which the implementation should be subject.
The proposal put to the EPA by the company considers an open pit mining operation and processing facility capable of treating 20 million tonnes of ore per annum.
The EPA has concluded that it is unlikely that the EPA's objectives would be compromised by implementing the project and have recommended the project proposal tabled by Moly Mines be approved subject to implementation of certain conditions, all of which are considered by Moly Mines to be reasonable and manageable through the company's best practice systems.
The EPA Bulletin is open now for a 2 week public appeal period, and depending on resolution of those appeals, if any, the final ministerial approval process will commence.
