Published: May 16, 2019 |

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OceanaGold has applied for a mining permit in the Coromandel Forest Park so it can better assess the area’s potential for an underground mine.

The permit at Wharekirauponga, 10 kilometres north of Waihī would not provide OceanaGold with the right to dig up minerals. The next steps would be to undertake further study within the area, OceanaGold senior community advisor Kit Wilson said.

It comes after the company announced in February it had found gold and silver in the area.

Wilson said OceanaGold had ruled out surface mining because the resource sat on conservation land. He believed it was possible to tunnel in from outside the Forest Park to gain access to the minerals.

“That means the next step is to apply for a mining permit and conduct technical, social, cultural and environmental studies that will tell us what that underground mine might look like and whether mining is going to be acceptable in that location.”

The move has angered environmental group Coromandel Watchdog of Hauraki, who have pointed its finger at the Government for failing to properly protect conservation land.

Group spokeswoman Augusta Macassey-Pickard said the permit was a consequence of Government inaction.

If granted, the new permit would replace the company’s exploration permit, and the next steps would be study and analysis beyond the geological work that has established the presence of a viable resource.

Source: Stuff

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