Sam Neill, the Jurassic Park actor and winemaker, has joined the fight against a proposed open-cast goldmine near his vineyard in Central Otago, New Zealand. The Bendigo-Ophir mine, planned by Australian company Santana Minerals, would sit in the Dunstan mountains, an area designated as an outstanding natural landscape by the local council. Neill, whose family has farmed the land for over 150 years, described the region as one of the most beautiful and remote places on earth, warning that the mine would permanently change it.
The project, estimated to contain NZ$6.75 billion in gold deposits, has been touted as the country's most significant gold discovery in decades. However, it has sparked deep divisions in the community. The environmental group Sustainable Tarras argues the mine would cause environmental destruction, threaten tourism, and endanger up to 650,000 native lizards. Santana Minerals disputes these claims, saying the lizard numbers are exaggerated and that a proposed toxic waste dam would be safe from earthquakes.
The mine is among hundreds of applications under the coalition government's fast-track law, which allows expedited approval for energy, mining, and infrastructure projects. Resources minister Shane Jones, a supporter of the 'drill, baby, drill' approach, says the mine would create 357 jobs and indirectly support 500 more annually. Local farmer Mark Davidson expressed support, citing economic challenges and the exodus of New Zealanders to Australia.
Critics, including former prime minister Helen Clark, accuse the government of overriding environmental protections. The fast-track law has drawn thousands of protesters and nearly 30,000 public submissions. Neill, who has made a mini-documentary opposing the mine, stressed he is not against mining in general but believes this particular project would be devastating. 'If this mine goes ahead, everything that you see is under a claim, and that'll be the end,' he said.
