The proposed Carmichael mine would export coal through Abbot Point (above) in Queensland, Australia.

The project, based in the Galilee Basin approximately 160 km northwest of Clermont, is expected to ultimately produce and export 60 million metric tons (mt) of coal per year and create 3,800 jobs.

According to Hunt, the latest approval would be “subject to 36 of the strictest conditions in Australian history.” In August, a federal court revoked an environmental approval granted to Adani in July 2014, saying that Hunt’s office failed to include provisions to protect a skink and a snake.