Group fights mining proposal

Ironsand sampling off the coast of Patea on the New Zealand Diving and Salvage Ltd MV Island Leader II for Trans-Tasman Resources Ltd PHOTO/FILE

Opponents of mining the seabed off the coast of Patea are ramping up their campaign.

They want 20,000 people to oppose the mining application being considered by the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) and are looking for a $100,000 war chest.

On October 21 Trans-Tasman Resources (TTR) applied to the EPA to mine 65 square kilometres of seabed in the South Taranaki Bight.

Its proposed operation would all happen offshore, with iron-rich particles shipped to Asia. The authority has since asked some clarifying questions, TTR chief executive Tim Crossley said.

It is still evaluating the hundreds of pages of information in the application.

If it decides the application is complete it could notify it publicly in the next few days.

Kiwis Against Seabed Mining (KASM) has called for a moratorium on seabed mining.

It is aiming to get 20,000 individual submissions against TTR's mining proposal, Raglan-based president Phil McCabe said.

It also wants a fighting fund of $100,000, to pay for legal and scientific advice, and is asking for donations.

Mr McCabe fears TTR's application, if successful, will open the door to mining ironsand from the seabed all the way from Wanganui to Northland on the North Island's west coast.

He said the time for making public submissions would likely run from mid-November to mid-December and KASM aims to make submitting easy. The group has a poster designed by well-known artist Nigel Brown, and is producing wristbands and T-shirts to promote its cause.

It has held walking and paddling protest events on the coast, and students of Opunake High School also held a "Hands Across the Sea" protest event.