Ellesmere sand mining permitted to continue

Press, 4 November 1986, Page 7

Ellesmere sand mining permitted to continue

Sand mining can continue for five years on part of Lake Ellesmere’s Kaitorete Spit, recognised as “a minefield of archaeological sites,” the Planning Tribunal has decided.

But if the mining uncovers any old Maori sites they will have to be left for 28 days for the Historic Places Trust to investigate.

The tribunal has recommended to the Minister of Energy, Mr Tizard, that W. A. Habgood, Ltd, should be allowed to continue the mining, though its application for 23.4 ha has been reduced to 15.8 ha of the Crown land.

In setting the five-year limit on the application, the tribunal said: "We wish to record that in our judgment, the mining of

sand from Kaitorete Spit should not be allowed to continue for very much longer.”

Sand has been mined on the spit since the 19305. It is used for sandblasting and the manufacture of concrete products and tiles. The tribunal described it as “a significant mineral resource for the Canterbury region.” The mining is excluded from the frontal sand dunes to reduce the risk of coastal erosion, and it must stay away from a plant colony seen as significant. The tribunal said it was concerned that no steps had been taken to formally protect the archaeological sites on the spit, apart from relying on the Historic Places Act. Some work on the area

has been done, but the tribunal was told during the hearing that the spit was a veritable minefield of archaeological sites. Some of the important sites may be outside the mining area, but there was no way to be sure. Sometimes it was only during excavation work that they were found, the tribunal noted.

An archaeological consultant told the tribunal that a large number of ovens, stone artefacts and rubbish heaps were on the spit. There were probably three or four burial sites, but probably none was in the mining area.

The tribunal has set down a condition that the mining company must have a survey made to try to find any archaeological or historical remains, or burial sites, before work

goes on in any new area.

Work must stop in the vicinity if any site is found during mining, and the Historic Places Trust must be told immediately. The trust will the have 28 days to investigate the site.

A list of conditions has been set down to ensure the mining does not cause unnecessary destruction or damage to vegetation or property.

The tribunal was told of the spit’s significance to the Maori people, and of its use as a source of pingao, a vulnerable plant used in making tukutuku (wall panels) and raranga (Maori plaiting).

It also heard about two rare species of moths, one of them flightless, found in the Kaitorete sand dunes.