Green light for South of Embley alumina project near Weipa

The Federal Government has approved the $1.4 billion South of Embley project near Weipa after years of wrangling.

Environment Minister Tony Burke signed off on the project with 76 conditions relating mainly to the project's impact from shipping on the Great Barrier Reef.

The original referral decision on the Rio Tinto Alcan project was revoked last year after environmental groups raised concerns about the reef impact.

The development of South of Embley would add an extra 40 years of production to Weipa and boost Gladstone's alumina industry as well as generating about 1200 jobs.

"The inclusion of the shipping impacts on the Great Barrier Reef in the revised referral has meant that Rio Tinto Alcan provided a fundamentally more comprehensive environmental impact statement which addressed all the key environmental impacts on matters of national environmental significance," Mr Burke said.