The Martha Mine is an open cut
operation situated in the midst of Waihi town which has been operating since
1987. Since then it has produced some 700,000 ounces (oz) of gold and 4,000,000
oz of silver from an epithermal vein system. It was previously worked by
underground methods from 1880 to 1952 to a depth of 600 m producing 5 million
ounces (Moz) of gold and 30 Moz of silver. The licensed reserves are scheduled
to be mined out early in the year 2001. An additional economic resource of over
750,000 oz of gold has been identified which can be accessed by deepening the
pit a further 50 m along the main Martha vein. This would extend the mine life
to the year 2007. Applications were lodged on 4 July 1997 for the necessary
resource consents, discharge permits and variations for the current Mining
Licence conditions. The extension project requires approval from the District
Council, Regional Council and the Ministry of Commerce. The consent and
permitting process is extensive because of the urban setting of the mine. An
approach to keep the extension as similar as possible to the current operations
was adopted to give the community and authority confidence in the proposed
extension.
This
paper summarises the extension detail and the permitting requirements it has had
to address despite the extension being "more of the same". The permitting
process has been exhaustive with little recognition of the standards already
achieved in protecting the environment which are recognised
worldwide.