The company behind the planned large gold mine in Bendigo in Central Otago has replied to comments from invited parties on the proposal.
Central Otago Winegrowers Association said in its comments Central Otago would lose its status as a premier wine region and decades of effort will be ‘‘annihilated’’ should a planned gold mine go ahead.
It said the Central Otago wine industry operated within a premium, place-based market where reputation was closely tied to environmental integrity and consumer perception directly influenced value.
Santana Minerals said in its response there was a small amount of tourism activity that occurred directly within and immediately surrounding the proposed mine site.
‘‘The evidence suggests that only about 0.3% of visitor days in inland Otago can be directly related to activity on land adjoining the mine, which would be the equivalent to about $5.6 million of existing tourism GDP associated with these areas,’’ economist Benje Patterson said.
‘‘There are examples in Australia of mining and tourism co-existing, for example the Hunter Valley, which is within 50km of open pit coal mines.’’
The winegrowers association said mines were not massive employers and much of the money made at the mine would head overseas.
But Santana said that gross national product from the project was $230 million a year, or 64% of direct GDP, showing nearly two-thirds of revenue would remain in New Zealand, much of it wages.
Conversely, based on surveys of Central Otago vineyards in 2024, 74.5% of staff were temporary overseas workers — backpackers and recognised seasonal employees.
‘‘As a point of comparison, Matakanui Gold Ltd’s (MGL) survey of people who have expressed an interest in working at the mine shows just 3% of workers would require visa sponsorship to take up roles at the mine.’’
Santana is the parent company of MGL.
Santana Minerals acknowledged the perception of the impact on brands and perceptions related to the mine, which could indirectly affect sales of wine from vineyards across the rest of the Central Otago wine region.
‘‘Such indirect effects are not anticipated if the Bendigo-Ophir gold project is operating within the conditions of its approvals.
‘‘The Central Otago wine region is geographically spread out, with Bannockburn 30km away from the mine site, and Gibbston 55km removed.
‘‘Evidence from the Hunter Valley in Australia suggests that premium wine regions can co-exist with mining.’’
The association also questioned the short-term sugar hit the mine would bring economically.
Santana said the net present value of the GDP effects was $3.1 billion.
The gold mine was expected to generate $360m of GDP every year, while viticulture in its immediate vicinity generated $10m a year of GDP, Santana said.
In answer to concerns of the Department of Conversation over over the loss of habitat, Santana said the assessment of ecological effects recognised the project would cause significant adverse effects. However a comprehensive ecological assessment had been conducted conservatively and precautionary.
‘‘The proposed effects management package — comprising avoidance measures, an ecological rehabilitation programme, a 2219ha offset and compensation programme, an applied research programme, and proposed additional measures including habitat acquisition and a $10 million conservation funding commitment — represents a substantial response that will achieve net gains for many species and habitats.’’
It also disagreed the magnitude of loss of species was a precedent.
‘‘There is clear precedent for impacts of equal or greater scale. For example, historical mining activities at Macraes Gold Mine and Stockton Coal Mine have resulted in more substantial effects, either in terms of the number of individuals affected and/or the conservation status of the species involved, including impacts on nationally threatened lizard species.’’
