Mining disaster looms

WE NOTE a public notice in recent editions of the Mail, notifying of an application for an exploration licence to look for ‘economic gold resources’.
The application is from Nugget and Stone P/L in Caulfield.
The area applied for is 44 square kilometres and the boundaries are from just north of Airlie Road and extends east to beyond Don Road west to include the river flats and south to include all of Badger Creek, the Sanctuary and Don Road sporting complex.
Inquiries by email have lacked any of the usual social courtesies.
Unfortunately, the website wasn’t all that forthcoming and neither was the following phone call to the department concerned.
It seems the approval of this application is a fait accompli, unless compelling reasons are lodged with the department.
Our concerns are what happens if they find what they want to mine anywhere within this large area be it on residential, privately owned or on crown land’ the river flats, Badger Creek Park or in the sanctuary precinct.
The department representative said they would need to “seek approval“ from the relevant owners and if that is not forthcoming, off to VCAT.
Our belief is this application should be opposed now, certainly by those residents within the area of the application.
We don’t want another fracking disaster on our doorstep and the thought of ‘liaising’ with a government department, or a mining company.
We do not want any mining in the Yarra Valley.
Therefore, there should not be approval of this application.
Why would a mining company apply for an exploration licence if they didn’t intend to mine what they find?
Objections should be sent to manager, Earth Resources Tenements, GPO Box 4509 Melbourne 3001, within 21 days after the latest date on which the application was advertised’.
John Rosser,
Healesville.