My concern is about the consequence of this particular mine, specifically the tailings facility that will remain long after the mining stops. At current levels it would take well over a century of gold royalties to equal the cost of that single public project. One tailings facility. The proposed Bendigo tailings facility sits at the headwaters of a river system that flows through farms, vineyards and communities across Central Otago. My question to the minister would have been simple: why remove the one mechanism that helped communities scrutinise projects of this scale?

Source: Otago Daily Times March 06, 2026 22:36 UTC