Mining in State forest

Press, 5 August 1985, Page 12

Mining in State forest

Sir,—Congratulations on the thoughtful and interesting feature article on the gold miners, Bill and Afton Blackadder. It is not before time that the people became aware of the disastrous effects that the extreme preservationists of the conservation movement are having on thwarting development projects which could generate wealth and employment for local communities and for New Zealand. We must take our hats off to the Blackadders for persevering in their struggle to make an honest living from the land for an honest day’s work. If we had more industrious people like the Blackadders instead of a plethora of vociferous minority groups trying to tell the rest of us what we should do with our lives and how we should think, then this great country would be even better. Some of your conservationist correspondents are a veritable microcosm of ignorance on the effect of development projects on the environment, particularly mining.—Yours, etc., D. C. McLISKY. Whangarei, August 1, 1985.