NZResources.com — 23 September 2009
Posted in: Perspectives: Wednesday, 23 September 2009
NZResources.com — 23 September 2009
By Richard Michael, Chief Executive of Straterra
Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee’s plans for a stocktake of valuable minerals in the conservation estate give a clear indication of the pragmatic approach the Government is taking regarding this issue.
Interestingly, the majority of public and media response has been equally realistic with very fair and balanced reporting and comment.
Yes, concerns raised by environmental groups gained much coverage. That is totally understandable and those views must be part of the full and open debate that will be essential to ensure that any decisions taken are for the benefit of all.
Once the most emotive responses had faded from the headlines, there followed some very reasoned discussion. Articles in the Listener and New Zealand Herald were among examples of balanced editorial thinking.
In his speech announcing the review -- presented to the NZ Branch of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy in Queenstown -- Brownlee outlined plans to review the protection for Conservation Department (DoC) land, improve access, and to allow the possibility of exploration and extraction of mineral deposits that, in some cases, would previously have been excluded from consideration.
The Minister made clear that enhancing our natural resource potential and use of Conservation estate is not an either/or situation, these activities can co-exist and the overall response appears to suggest that the Kiwi public recognises this.
DoC administers nearly 5 million hectares - 50,000 square kilometres - of land, about 20% of New Zealand’s total land area. This includes conservation parks; ecological, sanctuary, wilderness and watercourse areas; marginal strips; stewardship lands; and other specially protected areas.
One of the arguments raised against exploring the untapped resources of the Conservation Estate has been the potential impact increased access to DoC land could have on tourism.
Unquestionably, tourism is too valuable to be impacted on in any way. There would be no question of mining land of outstanding conservation value; it must be preserved not just for tourists but for Kiwis and future generations for Kiwis.
But modern mining techniques mean that increased access can be achieved without compromising those values. Tourism also plays a vital role in the Canadian economy with visitor numbers expected to exceed 1.6 billion annually within a decade.
This co-exists with a minerals industry which contributes $40 billion to the country’s GDP each year.
The fact that Canada’s economy grew for the first time in 11 months in June has been largely attributed to oil and gas drilling, Interestingly, Canada is also the world’s top country for global mineral exploration.
To quote The Listener article: “It may be that a far-flung part of the conservation estate that no tourist will ever see, tramp on, have a picnic beside or take a jet boat through, could be mined for its mineral wealth, and as a country, we could be better off.”
In any area where significant resources are discovered, there would have to be a rigorous process of
weighing up the value of that resource, the conservation value of the land, the potential impact of mining and the potential for ultimately rehabilitating the land.
For too long the harvesting of our natural resources, for the benefit of all New Zealanders has been treated as some kind of guilty secret. The Government has brought the issue out into the open in the best way possible.
The way forward now is for the Government, tourism bodies, environmentalists and the natural resources industry, everyone who wants the best for New Zealand and an improved life for New Zealanders, to work together.
If that can be achieved there is a real opportunity for this country to ‘have it all’.