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The Grey District Council received eight submissions, all of which opposed the proposal. Department of Conservation director-general Lou Sanson’s submission said he was concerned the proposal did not adequately identify the effects on indigenous biodiversity and freshwater fish habitat. The habitats of native animals including longfin eels, whitebait, white heron and banded dotterel could be affected by the mining activity, and the company did not provide adequate information on how it would avoid or mitigate the potential adverse effects, he said.
Joanne Naish/Stuff
Barrytown JV Ltd wants to mine gold, garnet and titanium on land in the Barrytown area.
The public will not get a say on a proposed sand mine that will increase truck traffic on a stunning coastal drive.
Barrytown locals have called for the West Coast Regional Council and the Grey District Council to allow public consultation on a proposal to mine 5000 tonnes of heavy mineral concentrate from 115 hectares of private farmland every week. The land is on the Coast Road tourist drive (State Highway 6), between Greymouth and Punakaiki.
The councils wrote to interested parties saying they had decided to process the applications with limited notification.
That meant only people deemed by the councils as “affected parties” would be invited to make submissions.
That meant only people deemed by the councils as “affected parties” would be invited to make submissions. Barrytown JV Ltd, which is mostly Australian-owned, wants to mine minerals including gold, garnet and titanium and truck them to Westport for export. The land that could be mined borders the Paparoa National Park, the Tasman Sea and the Coast Road, which had been named by Lonely Planet as one of the top 10 coastal drives in the world.
Joanne Naish/Stuff
Barrytown JV Ltd wants to mine gold, garnet and titanium on land in the Barrytown area. The councils’ letter says the reason for the limited notification was that the proposal would not affect the environment.