Proposal to mine Aspiring

A leaked report recommends the Government remove up to 20% of Mount Aspiring National Park from a schedule of protected areas, opening the way for mining and exploration in the designated World Heritage area.

The Green Party yesterday released the leaked memo, which detailed a report from government officials recommending that the northeast sector of the national park - near Haast Pass - be considered for removal from schedule 4 of the Crown Minerals Act.

• 'I believe he climbed the mountain'
 

In August, Minister of Energy and Resources Gerry Brownlee announced a government review of schedule 4, which prohibits mining and exploration in national parks.

When contacted by the Otago Daily Times yesterday, Mr Brownlee said he was still waiting for reports from Ministry of Energy and Resources and Ministry of Economic Development officials.

The Government had made "no secret" of its intentions to conduct a "stock take" of New Zealand's mineral resources and the reports would be publicly released once he had seen them, Mr Brownlee said.

Green Party deputy leader Metiria Turei said the memo proved the Government was not telling the truth about its intentions regarding mining and exploration within New Zealand's conservation estate.

"The rumble of Brownlee's bulldozers just got louder," she said.

Ministers were not only planning to allow mining in national parks, they were also considering removing the protection against mining from large areas of them, she said.

"Once these areas are removed from schedule 4, they will never get their protected status back," Ms Turei said.

The memo had been provided in confidence to her and came from an emailed Department of Conservation request to Ngai Tahu asking for its view regarding removing 20% of Mount Aspiring National Park from the protected schedule, Ms Turei said.

The Government had already indicated that where land had high conservation value it "wouldn't be touched", Mr Brownlee said.

He did not know where the threshold of "high conservation value" would be set.

"Like I said, I'm still waiting for these reports."

Federated Mountain Clubs president Rob Mitchell said the proposal was a serious threat to the future of the "iconic" national park.

The northeast area of the national park threatened with mining included the popular tramping areas of the Wilkin, Siberia and Young Valleys, as well as the "stunningly beautiful" Mt Brewster, he said.

The report says more than 20% of Mount Aspiring National Park, largely contained within the northeast sector, contains "high prospectivity" for "at least 11 [types]" of mineral deposits, particularly in respect of tungsten and rare earth elements.

The area is home to the only known carbonatite deposits in New Zealand, including showings of gold, chromium and nickel, the memo says.

Mr Brownlee played down any suggestion mining was imminent within the national park.

New Zealand's spokesman for the World Commission of Protected Areas, Bruce Jefferies, said the Government's stance was disappointing and would damage New Zealand's international standing.

Mount Aspiring National Park was a designated World Heritage Site and any suggestion it might be opened up for mining and exploration was a "serious blow" to the government's integrity, he said.

The recommendation
1. The area contains the only known carbonatite deposits in New Zealand, with several known mineral occurrences within the park, including showings of gold, chromium and nickel. Geology suggests the park area could yield at least 11 types of mineral deposits.

2. The land in the northeast corner of Mount Aspiring National Park has high mineral prospectivity, particularly in respect of tungsten and REEs (rare earth elements).

3. It is recommended the northeast sector of the national park be considered for removal from the schedule of places protected from mining.