World's Largest Dinosaur Park to be Built by Australian Mining Tycoon

An Australian mining tycoon with a penchant for lavish projects has been given approval to build what is said will be the world's largest dinosaur park.

While Clive Palmer will likely spare no expense at his dinosaur park, similarities to "Jurassic Park" will likely end there. The park will house about 150 life-sized, animatronic dinosaur models.

''It's a very small, low-key dinosaur display at best,'' said Jason O'Pray, a member of the Sunshine Coast Regional Council. The Council faced nearly 200 objections to the construction of the park, which will be built on the already existent Coolum Resort.

''This is not Disneyland. It is not a theme park," O'Pray said, attempting to quell concerns of the opposition, who suggest the dinosaur park would make a mockery of the resort's renowned golf course, according to the Brisbane Times.

"The new attractions are internal to the resort and would, therefore, not impact on the character of the area," the Sunshine Coast councilors said. Palmer received the council's unanimous approval to build the dinosaur park in an area that already contains an 8-meter tall T-Rex known as Jeff.

The electronic roars the park's dinosaurs make will be regulated to a maximum of 5 decibels above background noise levels. A 6-meter height restriction will prevent the park from installing models of the most massive dinosaurs, but an exception will be made for the 10-meter-tall Ruyangosaurus.

At least two triceratops models will be among the 149 installed in the park, according to the Coolum Resort website.

The park is intended to open in 2014.

Clive Palmer has made headlines for other over-the-top ventures. He is the financier behind the Titanic II, the modern ocean liner designed as an exact replica of the original doomed ocean liner. This week, several UAE companies expressed interest in bringing the ship to port in Dubai once it is completed, according to The Guardian.

Palmer, a mining magnate whose fortune has once landed his name on billionaire lists, is worth $895 million as of January 2013. Forbes listed Palmer as number 31 of Australia's 50 richest people.