Mining proposals for the Jackson 5 and Bungalbin East deposits will now be assessed under a public environmental review.

It comes after the EPA set the level of assessment for the deposits as API category B – or environmentally unacceptable – in December, and formally recommended against the development in January.

However, the EPA’s views are only advice and Jacob has the power to overrule them.

MinRes said his action was consistent with the WA government’s 2010 decision to classify the area containing the deposits as a lower level conservation area that did not preclude mining, rather than declaring the area an A-class reserve.

The company said it was confident its industry leading environmental practices and rehabilitation expertise could successfully balance environmental and development requirements.

“Development of mining operations at these deposits will provide a significant boost to the regional and state economy, with the operations phase providing almost 2000 full time equivalent positions, comprised of both direct and flow-on employment,” MinRes said.

The development of the satellite deposits will extend the life of the Carina operation by 15-20 years.

MinRes has funded a $A100,000 Curtin University post-doctoral research fellow to further understand biodiversity in the area.

Carina currently produces around 5 million tonnes of iron ore per annum.

MinRes shares closed at $6.20 yesterday.