Image via WikipediaI have never used this blog as a political blog, but because it does have some New Zealand readership, maybe I should have. But I will discuss proposed mining in the future. The National Government proposed last year some mining in the conservation estate, but it went down like a lead balloon. But I suspect it was a government making policy on the hoof. Kiwis just don't want an irresponsible government such as the present one interfering with our conservation estate.There is an article in one of today's Sunday papers on proposed mining in the sea around New Zealand. So I'm a little mystified as to why the National government attempted unsuccessfully to gain public support for conservation estate mining when its fully aware of the proposal to tap the sunken treasures in the sea in New Zealand's economic zone.
Mining will hopefully commence in 2012 or 2013. There is a wealth of iron, precious metals and phosphates in the vast undersea continent of which New Zealand is just a visible part.
Mining companies from around the world are turning their eyes towards the prospects of the insatiable demand for raw materials from economies such as China to be supplied from New Zealand's economic zone. But NZ companies are in the forefront of that drive to exploit seabed minerals.
'Widespread Energy' hopes to be extracting phosphates from the Chatham Rise late next year, and 'Trans-Tasman Resources' wants to start mining ironsands of the 'Taranaki Basin' in 2013. These initiatives go back to the time of the last Labour administration, and the present Key Government cannot claim any credit for these proposals.
Those companies who are most advanced in their prospecting say they are very close to turning their prospecting permits into mining rights. And thats when a vigourous public debate on the merits, risks and rewards of taking tonnes of ore from the seabed will intensify.
