Claims an Australian mining company was "flying under the radar" in Central Otago were rebutted yesterday and questions were raised about the makeup of the group complaining.
Santana Minerals has estimated it could extract $4.4 billion worth of gold from an open pit and underground gold mine on Bendigo and Ardgour Stations. Earlier this month, Santana bought the more than 2800ha Ardgour Station, subject to Overseas Investment Office approval. The company has said it will lodge within weeks a fast-track resource consent application to operate an open pit and underground mine.
Sustainable Tarras chairwoman Suze Keith said the group had newly uncovered information that Santana Minerals was intentionally "flying under the radar" to avoid scrutiny of its plans to mine in the Bendigo-Ophir area.
The group is described on its website as a "group of concerned locals who love Tarras and want to live here".
Otago regional councillor Michael Laws responded to Sustainable Tarras, questioning if they actually lived in the region. He had lived in the Cromwell area for nearly 10 years and had never met any of the people who signed the statement.
"I’m intrigued as to how [Ms Keith], a Wellington-based environmental activist, became the chair of an anti-mining lobby in my constituency"
Mr Laws said he had not had any Tarras resident contact him with concerns about the Santana application.
"If opposition was so widespread then you’d expect their local regional councillor would be an early reference point, would you not?"
Ms Keith did not respond before deadline to a query from the Otago Daily Times about where she lived.
Sustainable Tarras’ statement said Santana Minerals was trying to avoid scrutiny by operating in breach of the district plan, giving nearby residents little notice of blasting activity that did not have council approval and asking for non-publicly notified resource consent.
"It’s beyond arrogant — in fact it’s a callous disregard for the locally affected residents and indeed our local district council"
Santana had likely been operating outside the district plan rules for years by operating plant to process drill samples and co-ordinate drill crews from Bendigo, the statement said.
Ms Keith said Santana had applied for consent from the Central Otago District Council for a mining camp and requested it be non-publicly notified.
The group also said the company had reneged on plans to construct a large, multi-year workers’ campground and replace it with temporary shelters.
Santana Minerals chief executive Damian Spring said the company’s current resource consent application was specifically for early infrastructure works outside the outstanding natural landscape and was following the normal Central Otago District Council process.
The company’s planners had advised the application be non-notified due to its low effect and in accordance with the district plan, he said.
Temporary buildings had been established in Bendigo while consent applications for permanent facilities were under way.
Residents near the proposed mine site were contacted last week with an overview of planned works over the next six months, subject to resource consent where needed, he said.
Part of that was roadworks on a section of Thomson Gorge Rd between Matilda Rise Rd and Rise and Shine Valley, which was due to begin yesterday. That information was also shared by the district council as part of its traffic management plan.
A small blast would be needed to access 2000cum of material from a pit to test it for strength as roading material. That was a permitted activity under both CODC and Otago Regional Council plans, he said.
Worker accommodation for the mine would be a mix of caravan/campervan facilities and temporary accommodation. All mine workers would be required to be residential, and transport would be provided to towns within an hour’s drive of the mine.
Chipsealing the section of Thomson Gorge Rd in front of private residences was still in the plan once construction was completed, Mr Spring said.
A district council spokeswoman did not respond to questions from the Otago Daily Times before deadline.
