Kōrero: Gold and gold mining

Coromandel Peninsula has a long history of mining. In the 1970s many people looking for an alternative lifestyle moved to the peninsula, attracted by cheap land. They opposed further mining as many of the old, abandoned mines had ruined the environment. Attempts to ban mining on the peninsula have been battled out in court. With as much as $10 billion worth of gold left there, mining’s supporters point out the economic opportunities missed if mining were to be banned.