Plans for a large-scale alluvial gold mine near Roxburgh have unearthed more opposition than support at the early stage of the planning process.
Submissions to the mine's resource consent applications closed earlier this week and the majority of views aired opposed the project.
Kokiri Lime Co Ltd has applied to the Central Otago District Council and the Otago Regional Council for consents to establish and operate the mine on 163ha of flat land, south of Coal Creek to north of Roxburgh, alongside State Highway 8, in the rural resource area.
The applications will be heard jointly by the councils on a date yet to be set.
The district council received 14 submissions, nine opposing the plans, one in support and four neutral.
Kokiri has applied to the regional council for permits to take groundwater for the mine and discharge water, to divert water from watercourses within the mine path, to excavate the mine pond and to disturb the bed of watercourses.
Ten submissions on those applications have been received by the regional council.
Six oppose the plans, one supports the project and three submissions are neutral.
The consent application said gold would be sourced from a historic channel of the Clutha River.
Seventeen landowners were involved and most of the land was currently used for pastoral farming and horticulture.
Consultation was still under way about land access.
A 30-year term of consent has been sought, allowing for 15 years of mining.
The mining operation would consist of an open pit excavated to between 14m and 18m deep and a floating gold processing dredge in the mine pond.
The mine would go through parts of SH8 if the NZ Transport Agency gave permission and six water courses crossed the mine site, the application said.
Topsoil and overburden would be stripped, stored temporarily and then used to rehabilitate the land behind the pond as the mine progressed.
Ten people would be employed at the peak of the operation.
Exploratory drilling had been done from 1992 to 2015 and detailed seismic and geophysical surveys of the mine permit area were also carried out on the mine permit area.
