Waihī mine campsite gets council tick to continue operating

An international mining giant has been given the green light to continue using a temporary worker campsite at its Waihī operation for the next five years.

Hauraki District Council approved OceanaGold's application for a five-year renewal of its Licence to Occupy the campsite, which houses 10 to 15 people, at a meeting on Wednesday.

The licence was up for renewal after the Court of Appeal ruled the mine's original licence was unlawful in April, finding fencing off a council-owned paper road blocked the public's right to pass.

Environmentalist group Ours not Mines Ltd was behind the challenge, questioning council's ability to grant OceanaGold a 40-year LTO in 2021 to occupy a paper road.

Council previously operated under the assumption the LTO gave OceanaGold the right to build just ventilation shafts.

Mayor Toby Adams put his hand up admitting he didn't read the legal documentation thoroughly enough but maintained, however, council made the right decision to grant the LTO in 2021.

"I smack myself on the hand for not actually reading through the lawyer's letter and I probably should have... we should have had more of an understanding but that's on us.

"I still believe hand on heart we made the right decision. We got some flak from it but we made the right decision."

Previously, Adams declined to comment to Local Democracy Reporting about the licence's renewal because he wanted to wait until council deliberations were over.

But on Wednesday, in chambers, he said the "vested interest" the community had in mining operations required the debate to be public.

"I made the decision to have it in the public arena, give the public a chance to listen and hear how councils make a decision on something like this," Adams said.

"Nobody's fronted up which actually surprises me to be honest," he said, referring to the empty public forum.

Adams told his council he expected they share his view of treating the mine no different to any other business or organisation.

"They should get the same level of respect than if it was an ice cream factory, whether it was the sticker factory built out here... we do the same thing.

"That's what good governance is about, not allowing emotions to get involved in your decisions."

OceanaGold has ten campsites in the area, nine on DOC land and one on council land.

The size of the campsite and the sheer ruggedness of its Coromandel bush location was not lost on elected members, with group manager - service delivery Adrian de Labourde saying the 144m² site would be smaller than council chambers.

According to the agenda for Wednesday's meeting, the campsite was "only accessible by helicopter and then a trek on foot", so it would be unexpected to see "more than a handful of people" trekking past the camp within a five-year period.

Adams said he had previously flown over the campsite, which was built in February this year, and described its remoteness as "being lost at sea" and "so minimal it's not funny".

A three-month termination clause would be attached to the grant, a stipulation welcomed by elected members.

Litigation by a third party was included as a reason to terminate and OceanaGold would bear council's legal fees if required.