Mining company fronting drop-in sessions but locals demand more details

The first in a series of community drop in sessions hosted by Santana Minerals took place Monday, but a group of Tarras locals concerned about the prospect of a large open cast gold mine in their backyard wants more information available to the public as soon as possible.

Santana Minerals chief executive Damian Spring told the Cromwell Community Board during a presentation in the public forum of a meeting last week the company is on track to submit a resource consent application for its proposed mine near Bendigo in February and is "rapidly progressing" a feasibility study of the site.

The company is gunning for inclusion in the government's Fast-track Approvals Bill.

But the speed of the process is unsettling for members of the Sustainable Tarras group, which has shifted its lobbying efforts from the now shelved Tarras international airport proposal to Santana Mineral's mine.

While group representative Rob van der Mark welcomes the company's public consultation sessions that kick off this week, he thinks the information available does not delve deep enough.

“The massive scale of the operation means that there’s a lot to be discussed in terms of the pros and cons to the local community. What we know is that people are not at all aware of the full scope, scale and likely impact of this mine proposal on Central Otago, as no one has yet shared this information."

Mr van der Mark says what he discovered at Monday's drop-in session failed to further his understanding of the proposal.

“While Santana Minerals promises that the mine will be worth it from an economic point of view, the materials presented...have a long way to go before the local community can be confident that the benefits outweigh the mine’s environmental, social and reputational impacts and long term risks."

He thinks the "intense time pressure" the company is under to take advantage of the fast-track bill before parliament is problematic.

"This reduces the time for careful evaluation and community engagement and hugely exacerbates potential long term risks. It is highly concerning for a development project of this nature that only five months out from formal submission key decisions are not yet finalised, are rushed, and that key information is not yet available to the locally affected community."

Sustainable Tarras is urging Santana Minerals to release additional information as soon as it becomes available and not hold it back from independent analysis.

Ideally, it wants the company to drop the fast track process in favour of that outlined by Resource Management Act.

"Only with such a process can people feel confident that the right decisions will be made for the country and the involvement of the affected local community,” Mr van der Mark says.

Meanwhile Santana Minerals was questioned by members of the Cromwell Community Board and the mayor, who was in attendance at last week's meeting, on where the 250 employees needed for the mine will live, in an area already struggling to accommodate workers, and the publicly voiced concerns of local viticulturists to the project.

While Mr Spring said permanent workers accommodation at the mine site is not being considered, a temporary "camp" could be an option during the construction phase, when outside specialist workers would be flown in.

He said it is "too early to really land on our position" regarding any potential conflict between a mining operation and winemakers at Bendigo, but indicated he having discussions with industry representative groups on this.

The mine would be located on Thompson Gorge Road in the Rise and Shine Valley, and the company has indicated it could generate $4.4 billion of revenue over a 10 year lifespan.

However at the community board meeting Mr Spring said the company would likely be applying for a 25 year consent at the site.

Mr Spring also hinted at some tension during the meeting, saying members of the Tarras community "have educated us on where they sit" on the plans.

He told those in attendance he thinks Cromwell is "the town most likely to benefit" from the mine.

Santana Minerals has scheduled a series of regular public drop-in sessions over the coming months to be held at the Tarras Community Hall and its Cromwell offices at 15a Chardonnay Street.

In promoting them, it says the sessions are "a chance to chat to the team about the project, find out about what stage we are at, and share your thoughts".

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