Yindjibarndi Traditional Owners "still haven't given up" after their long battle for compensation for mining on their Country saw the federal court award them $150 million.

On Tuesday, Justice Stephen Burley said he had "concluded that the claim should be assessed in the amount of $150 million" for cultural loss caused by mining on Yindjibarndi Country in the Pilbara.

The case had been brought by the Yindjibarndi Ngurra Aboriginal Corporation against the State of Western Australia and Fortescue-related entities concerning mining activities linked to Fortescue's Solomon Hub iron ore operations near Roebourne.

After the ruling was brought down, Yindjibarndi Ngurra Aboriginal Corporation chief executive Michael Woodley expressed a degree of disappointment at the outcome, which also assessed economic loss at around $100,000.

"The environment is important, the water is important. The river system is important. Our heritage is important. Our cultural connection to our Country is important. The songlines are important," he said.

"Over 30 years now since the Mabo decision... in some cases we get to this point and it is ... a bit disappointing that substantial rights haven't been considered."

Mr Woodley said assessing the compensation payout needed to be framed in terms of the "enormous challenge that we have on a day to day basis, wanting to rise" the standard of living for Yindjibarndi people to the "standard of everyday Australians".

"You can only scale that (compensation) in or align that to the housing needs that we need to provide for our people. You can only align that to the health that we need to provide for our people, the education that we need to provide for our people in this generation," he said.

The decision 'is something we can work with'

The payout, while well short of the compensation sought by Traditional Owners, was three times the previous highest payout of its kind.

Mr Woodley said any decision that "recognises the impact of Yindjibarndi's heritage loss... is something we can work with".

"It's something that we would review with our lawyers, and then we'll have a we'll probably have a better position in terms of what that means in a holistic sense," he added.

Asked how it feels to have a decision from the court after a journey of close to two decades, Mr Woodley noted "we still haven't given up".

"This is kind of the second round of what we what we're trying to achieve and establish," he said.

"We've entered into a 15-plus year journey... We don't get this far and stop, right? So, we'll review it. We've been fighting all our lives, right?

"(We) need to stand firm that this is our Country. You know, we've been here for a long, long time."

'Fortescue accepts that the Yindjibarndi People are entitled to compensation'

In a statement issued Tuesday afternoon, a Fortescue spokesperson said Andrew Forrest and Fortescue "care deeply" about all First Nations people, including the Yindjibarndi community.

"Fortescue accepts that the Yindjibarndi People are entitled to compensation," the spokesperson said.

"The Company has agreed to and pays financial compensation under all of its other seven native title agreements.

"Fortescue has strong relationships with the First Nations people of the Pilbara region of Western Australia, with dedicated Heritage, Native Title and community teams working hand in hand with Traditional Custodians to ensure cultural heritage is managed sustainably and responsibly."

'The entire First Nations of this country are watching us'

Mr Woodley would not rule out the possibility of appealing the decision but said it was a matter for further discussion, and noted the case has implications for Traditional Owners nationwide.

"We were hoping for a better outcome, obviously," he said.

"The entire First Nations of this country are watching us today, right? I think for them as well the we were looking for some validation in terms of what First Nations mean to this country.

"So right now, and leading up to this case, I think we were championing a fair outcome for all First Nations... it starts off with ... furthering what Native Title really means to this nation.

"We get those outcomes from an independent arbitrator, and in this case, the federal court... But it keeps taking us forward in terms of the record (compensation), how the system recognises First Nations people."