There was an uproar among conservationists last August at the announcing, by Minister of Energy and Resources Gerry Brownlee, of a minerals sector review.
The outcry prompted headlines about mining such pristine areas as Mt Aspiring National Park.
The contentious review is due to go to public consultation next month and will be scrutinised and publicly fought over, as it should be.
After Labour's nine years of "hands-off" management of the resource sector, implementing National's initiatives will be a bloody transition.
Mr Brownlee is this weekend reading a draft of the minerals review and is keen to put it to the Cabinet before releasing it for public consultation by the end of February.
"After public consultation, we want to be in a position to make decisions by July," he said when interviewed this week.
"The [minerals] review is a significant aspect of Government work."
"Not only opening up access, but it is symbolic in that we want more exploration and mineral extraction," Mr Brownlee said. He cited the 470% rise in royalties as a reason.
On the question of threatened conservation areas, Mr Brownlee said all rock quarrying in the country amounted to 40sq km, of a total more than two million sq km.
Each hectare within the 40sq km had a value of $175,000, as opposed to dairying, which carried a value of $3500 per hectare.
The report would include not only the stocktake but also recommendations for change.
"We are taking this cautiously. I'm expecting public comment to be significant, before any final decisions are made," Mr Brownlee said.
This week, as an agent on a permit from the Government, Crown Minerals delivered an annual report on what the resource sector did around the country during the past year, not least of all bolstering Treasury income by more than $500 million, due mainly to petroleum-based royalties income.
Crown Minerals group manager Chris Kilby said New Zealand's mining sector had "largely bucked the trend" of the global economic downturn.
There had been near-record oil production, record gold and silver production, and "strong" exploration activity.
"The economic benefits of this high level of activity can be seen at both national and regional levels," Mr Kilby said.
The 21 million barrels of oil, predominantly from the offshore Tui field in Taranaki, which contributed 64% of the total oil exports, was valued overall at $2.8 billion, and became the country's third highest export earner after dairy and meat.
This made large inroads to decreasing the country's trading deficit.
Mr Kilby highlighted a recent report identifying more than $140 billion of still "in-ground value" metallic mineral resource, plus an additional $100 billion in low-grade lignite, which is largely scattered around Southland and Otago.
"The sector in New Zealand is poised for another active and positive year. Many explorers - petroleum, minerals and coal - have committed to extensive and exciting exploration programmes," he said.
Production in oil, gas, gold and coal was expected to be "strong" in 2010, boosted by the offshore Taranaki Maari oil field and long-awaited inaugural exports from hard-coking coal specialist Pike River Coal.
The listed Pike River has spent more than $288 million on development of its mine, which has an estimated life of 18 years.
Maari, estimated to have cost $1 billion to develop, produced its first oil last February, and has an estimated 50 million barrels to extract over 10-15 years.
For Mr Kilby, Crown Minerals had several highlights for the year, including a $25 million boost for more seismic survey spending by the agency to enlarge its data base, to entice oil and gas explorers to consider areas around New Zealand.
Mr Kilby confirmed this week that after OMV had finished its present seismic surveying in the Great South Basin, up to $3 million of the $25 million allocated to Crown Minerals would be used collecting more southern seismic data this year.
Since the Great South Basin permit holders were confirmed and launched in July 2007, potentially costing explorers Exxon and OMV more than $1 billion, the emphasis and news has been mainly around other basins in New Zealand.
A third seismic survey by OMV started a week ago in the Great South Basin.
On Wednesday, Mr Brownlee announced bidding was open for seven months for six new oil and gas exploration blocks in the Reinga Basin, off the northern tip of Northland, covering more than 100,000sq km.
In the past year, nine exploration permits were awarded in a Taranaki block offer, pending block offers in Northland and Raukumara were announced, and 2D seismic acquisitions were up almost 80% for the year while 3D acquisition was similar to that of the previous year.
Some of the heat has gone out of the much vaunted Great South Basin exploration by Exxon and Austrian-based OMV New Zealand.
Both have, in the past three months, been granted one-year extensions to their five-year permits - Exxon until October and OMV until July next year - at which time they have to make decisions on drilling (within another year's time) or dropping the permits.
Mr Kilby said considering the companies were only into the third year of the five-year permits, it was not surprising they sought an extension for what is difficult exploration in deep water basins.
While Exxon announced it was looking for a joint venture partner, further dampening expectations, OMV said in mid-January its initial seismic survey results had prompted a second seismic voyage, to glean an additional 2600km of 2D data from areas highlighted by the first voyage in the Great South Basin.
That survey is still under way.
There is speculation aplenty that Exxon, OMV and possibly Australian Worldwide Exploration and Origin Energy - the latter two with permits offshore from Oamaru - could share the costs of bringing a rig to New Zealand.
Acting chief executive for the Petroleum Exploration and Production Association of New Zealand, Mike Patrick, said 2008-09 was "good news" for the sectors, considering the global recession. He said 2010 looked an even better year.
The Maari and Kupe fields were coming on stream and a "boom" in offshore test drilling was scheduled. "Exploration is stepping out of the Taranaki [area], which is of great significance."
He highlighted the positive effects of the $25 million allocated to Crown Minerals by the Government, but considering the petroleum sector was last year the third-largest export earner, he hoped Mr Brownlee was considering making more resources available to the sector.
Mr Brownlee, and Minister of Conservation Tim Groser, are investigating whether protected conservation areas may be removed from schedule 4 to allow for mining exploration.
At the heart of the matter is the review of the Crown Minerals Act in which schedule 4 gives protected status to conservation areas and national parks, or 13% of New Zealand's land, but which could be changed to allow for mining exploration.
Looking for ways to boost the New Zealand economy after the recession, the National Government is aware the resource sector boom in Australia kept that country out of recession.
The sector has again showed clear signs of resurgence during the past quarter.
Mr Brownlee's bullish comments on the Government wanting more exploration and mineral extraction appears to set the scene for plenty of legislative change during 2010-11.
Mr Kilby, of Crown Minerals, said schedule 4 was one of two issues for 2010; being the minerals and separate petroleum review under way.
The Government was looking closer at boosting gross domestic product through the previously "undercooked" gold, coal, minerals and gas sectors.
"It's about striking a balance between development and conservation . . . letting New Zealanders know what is out there and could be used for their benefit," he said of the mineral stocktake.
The mining sector was rejoicing in finding an open-minded advocate in Mr Brownlee, and taxpayers should appreciate the country's trading deficit being ground down by oil exports and the increasing return from royalties.
However, "to exploit or explore" will be key arguments for the opposing sides in 2010.
The Government needs to proffer concise checks and balances to reassure the public that the country's high conservation values are not being sacrificed for economic benefit.
