New Zealand Gold Prospecting & Metal Detecting Forums Archive

Certainly written by the mining companies PR man with tongue in cheek methinks - in fact tome it is sort of like hiding the bomb complete with lit fuse by giving it a cover of raspberry jelly and cream - hand held methods indeed - until they are ready for round two and then it is drilling with associated tracks cut to get in with the drilling rigs and then...its all on.

Personally I would like to see it nipped in the bud with all foreign interests told where to go, gold mining being Nationally funded with all returns to into State coffers with areas forever protected from large scale mining unless the land to be mined was traded against other land of equal environmental value on a one hectare miniing to two hectare protected basis.

I dont think any foreign mining interests should be allowed into this country and I dont think any gold should go off shore.

I note the following statement from the article Sean has presented here

'Department of Conservation Golden Bay area manager John Masonsaid it was "pretty rugged country" containing old mining roads and mine workings.

"There's certainly some intact forest in there," he said. "Obviously all the gold areas have been well and truly turned over, and are revegetating."

If the prospecting permit is granted, which could take up to a year, the company will have to negotiate access with DOC.'

Macraes negotiated with DOC didnt they? - Didnt they pay $100,000 to effectively look the other way? I noticed Mason said "Obviously all the gold areas have been well and truly turned over, and are revegetating" - I think the only obvious thing is the fact that if left alone the land will obviously revegetate BUT it has not been well and truly turned over at all - Macraes was 'well and truly turned over by the oldies as well' - within the capabilities of their technology and finances - theres plenty more gold left there yet.

Edited by user Sunday, 1 April 2012 7:13:52 PM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified

Whats wrong with it - are you joking or actually serious - I will tell you whats bloody wrong with it by using Macraes as an example - What DO we get - we get SOME employment therefore some wages, we get a small boost to the local economy, some contractors get work - whats bad about it - every bit of gold MINUS 1 percent royalty goes offshore - OUR gold, New Zealand gold goes into foreign hands. What esle is wrong with it - DOC was paid off to look the other way while a huge and vaste area of land is being totally destroyed! Are you aware that Macraes mining paid around a hundred thousand dollars to DOCs in order to get their support - money speaks,money has destroyed a unique environment for the geckos which inhabit the area - in the end do the Geckoos matter - do YOU matter and all other New Zealanders - NO - or of course you might be one of the foreigners? Are you? - to make your comment I suspect that you are not a good old K1W1.

Get really and think seriously about foreign interests in New Zealand - Foreign and joint venture fishing has DESTROYED our fishing - this very day I was doing surveys in this regard in South Canterbury and the situation is frightful. While travelling back to Dunedin my observations in South Canterbury were painfully obvious in the Waikouaiti river where I did not see ONE Grey Eyed Mullet on the high tide where back forty years ago the river was teeming with them - where have they gone? Care to tell me?

WHO gets Macraes gold? - care to tell me?...its is not the people of this country I can assure you.

What is wrong with New Zealand creating its own infrastructure with all benefit going back into the country? Think about this carefully as it isnt rocket science - foreign interests bring money in but only because they are going to take more out!!! Milk foreign brains by all means but the ownership and profits should all go back into the National economy - this is a subject you really dont want to get me started on.

Remember this that foreign investors only improve the infrastructure and contribute to the economy IF they are going to take the Lions share of the profit. Nationalise the industries that foreigners would invest in, improve our economy by telling the International bankers to get stuffed as they have been MORE than repaid under the system they loaned us money - Fractional Reserve Banking and then put the money thus saved into improving our own infrastructure and economy...Do you fully understand exactly what Fractional Reserve Banking is and the detrimental affect it has on our country and the reason why the current political system is selling out to foreign investors? I wonder.

Edited by user Monday, 2 April 2012 8:02:24 PM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified

You can look at it in two ways...either

1) The money this government saved by telling the offshore bankers to get stuffed as we have paid enough back would be more than enough to set up many Macraes - if you dont understand the system under which we borrowed to become the Welfare State in the 1950s then google 'Fractional Reserve Banking'

2) Begin small and sink the profit into the business - I defy anyone to tell me it doesnt work IF you know what you are doing - many businesses fail because they were too ambitious - they borrowed too much to try to get rich too quick. I KNOW it works as I have more or less been there done that.

Yes it is just the way things are - because the ordinary people let it happen! The ordinary people are the vaste majority but those who run this country pull the wool over your eyes and will continue to do so until either the populace realise and do something about it OR it is too late.

Those who say that it is something you cannot change are defeatists. Up to you of course - you do realise that you cant go gold fossicking anywhere in this country legally unless you to to one of the Public Fossicking areas or can get friendly with a sympathetic land owner or take out a claim and it is going to get worse - it really doesnt worry me because I saw it coming years ago and bought an acre or two of a gold field where I can potter to my hearts content - it doesnt need to get worse if people stick up for their rights and ensure that a political party that is truly a peoples party is formed and gets into power and that is not impossible.

Remember that money creates money - I discovered that years ago - the more you have the the more you get and the more comes your way.

Edited by user Monday, 2 April 2012 10:09:21 PM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified

This is exactly my point...cheers.

YES I am 100% home grown but there is a much larger picture here. I suggest you have a closer look at the web site I porvided. The company is also interested in Rare Earth metals. China produces 70 to 80% of the global demand and have recently slammed the doors on supply to the West. This will force ALL production into China...I dont need to tell you what the problems with that are. Maybe the Gold exploration work will fund further exploration in other areas???

Without Rare Earths youd have no nice Flat screen TV, mobile phone, computer...etc etc etc and we all like these conveniences dont we??

In a perfect world the Gold would stay in NZ but when do you and I benefit any more from Gold produced here by NZ companies?

Whatever way you look at it, it doesn't make sense to let people buy your assets. The Chinese are trading us flatscreen TV.s in exchange for our land....
I understand the gains from trade, and have no problem with that.
What i do have a problem with is foreign corporates taking control of our food supply. The original Pakeha (for want of a better term, because it isn't ideal) came to NZ to get away from the sh!thole that Britain had become, where there was no middle class and no opportunity for the poor.
It saddens me to see NZ go this way

I think that some of the guys above dont realise that gold mining was an industry where New Zealand was at the fore and we could be again - it was here in New Zealand that hydraulic sluicing became a first and with great success and also the huge gold dredges - gold dredging expertise went from New Zealand to other parts of the globe and we led the world in this form of mining.

We have possibly paid back the National Debt a hundred times over because if the demands of the system under which we borrowed it - if we told the criminals who loaned us this money that they have had enough and to get stuffed then the money thus saved would make hte finances sunken into Macraes look like a kids piggy bank...we would save billions - billions that dont actually exist and yet are bankrupting us - all on paper.

If this country was led by people who had the courage to tell the International bankers to get stuffed and to create home grown industries then we could be self sufficient but New Zealand is no longer inhabited by DIY pioneer stock and the population today have lost the ability to even think for themselves. to me this is reflected in comments above...the defeatist attitude.

I have more than I want so I dont really give two hoots about those who are satisfied with 'Public Fossicking areas' and being led along the garden path like sheep and happy to sell the country down the drain. They whine about not having places to go but are quite happy to sell the country down the drain. Human nature!

As for me running the state of mining - I am happy in my own little world behind a locked gate...and it aint a public fossicking area...you really should do a big OE to the deep south Shane - you would find that you were welcome.

That is very profound but may be indicative of the new age Kiwi thought process.

You do it Shane - put all the two dollar pieces in a crock and when you have enough then let them pay for your trip - its sort of an enforced painless savings scheme. Your welcome down any time you like - my place is just about skittled now and gold is hard to find but still pops surprises - 34 gramme on the last day of 2011 - first day of 2012 and theres a spot or two where I know that gold should be picked up with a bit of hard work. Keep in touch and come on down. At the same time a big OE (It is an OE between the Islands isnt it?) down through Central Otago is well worth while and we can mark some detector spots up around Queenstown for you.

I see you are all Chch and further south, have you talked to anyone in the area about it? The Golden Blocks. How long it has been going on, the way they are treating the area and the local companies/people they hire? Have any of you been there for a look? Honestly before you comment go and have a look and find out a bit more info, what you read isnt always the way it is. I am a very frequent visitor and was there last weekend, if you went there and had a look at the terrain you would shit your pants. Its the hardest terrain I have seen and to say the least they are game. Do you know what the local area is gaining workwise, moneywise and employment? I know for a fact you wont take a pan in there let alone a dredge.

Edited by user Wednesday, 11 April 2012 9:23:09 PM(UTC)  | Reason: More to say

I do understand what you are saying here Lammerlaw, and I do agree. Im not selling my soul for anything like that. The areas I do like to see is that they ARE spending money here and not bringing in their own crews and machinery. Yes you are right a majority of the wealth is and does go overseas when mining takes place which does suck BIG TIME but who do we blame for that, the bloody Crown. The one thing I cant understand is they make it so damn hard for any of us to go and have a bit of fun for a weekend without spending a ridiculous amount of money having to have a claim, its not like we are going to bring in the diggers and 6 foot trommels but they are prepared to give it away to an overseas company that has millions to spend every year. It pisses me off as much as you trust me there, the only thing I am grateful for is that they are putting some money into the local economy of a small town and the surrounding area. The area they are in and looking at is spectacular for sure, I went up there last weekend and it is stunning to say the least and I would hate to see it look like the way you describe down south. I dont mean to sound like I would give them the go ahead but I like that they are bringing some finance in instead of none.