New Zealand Gold Fossicking Forums

Hi Gavin.

The best advice that I can offer about this is:

Be completely "UP-front"

Take the time to go and see the owner/s, and be Completely honest about your intentions so as to hopefully avoid future misunderstandings.

And dont take liberties with their land/gear/fences/gates or animals etc. This also means that you dont leave bloody great holes all over the place(fill them in neatly.)and leave the places as tidy as you found them!
Treat them with respect,and its usually reciprical. Mind you, there are some owners that will tell you to F--- off without listening to anything you wish to say.(In this case just Go.)

Cheers---Colin.

HI GUYS.
Maybe ive just done a dumb thing ?
as I have sent an e-mail off to our Prime Minister on a heartfelt subject.
I thought that you may like to read it, as it impacts on our Hobby.
Letter follows:

---

To the Prime Minister of “OUR” New Zealand

Hello John.
Greetings from the Coromandel Penninsular.

My name is Colin Atkinson, and I wish to ask you for a privilege that will be of immense benefit to fellow gold fossickers and metal detectorists in New Zealand, who are being alienated further and further away from the pastime hobby that they love and enjoy, by the almost impossible task that they face when confronted by having to attempt to conform and comply with the requirements of the current “Mining Act” in their small capacities as individuals.
There is also the fact that most of them do not possess the financial means to even apply for a license anyway. Let alone pay all the legal fees involved to carry this act to fruition.

Cap in hand, I humbly suggest, by asking you to consider re-instating similar regulations as those that applied to the “Miners Right” that existed years ago to help those single and destitute old fellows to possibly keep their noses above water in the old days, and hopefully obtain a subsistence life style of sorts.

I’m not saying that this privilege should confer on the holder all the same terms and conditions that the old Miners Right did, but that it give Individual rights to a person to fossick and or prospect on Crown / Conservation lands, and also within river/stream or creek beds/banks, or other lands (private lands with permission), or wherever it will not create a great impact on other persons pastimes etc.

I sort of suggest that this Privileged Right (If granted) be called:

“The Individuals (Non Amalgamating) Prospecting privileges.”

Which will confirm areas similar to the above mentioned types, and also give rights of sale to a Government agency (like a “Bank” or registered Gold buyer, etc.) in the off chance that if the lone individual should have a little luck in their fossicking efforts and pick up a bit of gold.This is because as the laws stand in this respect, a person cannot sell any small finds of gold they may procure through their diligence of perseverance with their hobby.
Many of us, as of this moment, are through ignorance, actually breaking the Mining laws quite unintentionally, and I personally don’t think that they should be put in this risky situation due to a misdemeanor of theirs, which is solely caused by being shut out of the prospecting loop by the removal of a basic regulation years ago by some politician who neglected to have the foresight that seems to be necessary to correct this concerting problem which is now faced by the hobbyist who means no harm to anyone, but has to face these difficult hurdles that have been placed squarely in their path of pursuing their recreational activities and enjoyments.

I remain in full anticipation that you may be so considerate as to make this commitment on our behalf to correct this seemingly Injustice?.

“Please”

Yours most sincerely and respectfully---Colin. N. Atkinson.

---

Regards---Colin.

Hi Guys
I just came across this "Interesting" report by “Stuff .co”(25/5/2010.) I have taken names etc out, and rewritten the essential parts.(you can pass some time by reading it)

Doc seizes gold dredge from a stream in the South Island.

They are investigating the illegal use of a suction dredge to look for gold on conservation land near Nelson.

Under the Crown Minerals Act, fossicking for gold without a permit carries a fine up to $200,000 or up to two years' imprisonment.

The dredge, was found by staff in a tributary of a stream on public conservation land. It was within an area where a two year prospecting permit for gold had been issued by Crown Minerals, the holders of which found the dredge (and an established camp) and reported it to Doc and the police, who are investigating.
This dredge weighed approx 20 kg, and was driven by a 4 stroke motor.

Cheers---Colin.

P.S. Did this belong to one of you Nelson fellers? :)

Hi Colin
No you don't bore me colin great letters keep it up
Regards Bill.

Cheers Guys.
Thanks for the nice supporting words fellers, much appreciated :)
I always think that I have run out of things to say that might just help clarify a situation, but somehow something always crops up.(Bad Penny like,ehh)

Regards---Colin.

Greetings to “All” the members of this forum.

Also to any others who may hold an interest in its aims to help the recreational gold “fossicking” persons of New Zealand to achieve their small dreams of being able to look for gold.
This aim can not be achieved “Freedom-wise” without us “Somehow” getting around all the hassles that are currently presented to us in the form of the excessive Governmental mining regulations which exist at the moment to stifle our hobby.

The only ways around these regulations at the moment is “Illegal”

We should also be able to “Legally” sell any gold found whilst enjoying our hobby.

With this tentatively in mind I wrote to the “Prime Minister” suggesting that a concession of sorts, be granted to us Hobbyist gold seekers.

( Refer to the earlier posts in this forum of approx 16/6/2010 )

As a result of that letter, I have received the following reply from the Honorable Minister of Energy and Resources--- Gerry Brownlee! Which looks like it may possibly be a precursor (hopefully) of a least giving us a fighting chance to achieve some sort of a reasonable outcome, “If we can get it all together”.

Just think what this could mean to our hobby in New Zealand.

He mentions that a discussion document will (shortly?) be available from their website,

www.crownminerals.govt.nz

Along with the ability to make submissions on our behalf.

Please keep an eye on this site, and when the document appears, please “POST” an “Alert” in “This” forum so that All members are made aware that it is available, and may send in a submission to support this good cause.

Sincerely---Colin. : )

Reply Letter follows:

Office of Hon Gerry Brownlee MP for lIam

Minister for Economic Development Minister of Energy and Resources

- 5 JUL 2010

Colin Atkinson, criticol.co.nz

Dear Mr Atkinson.

I refer to your email of 16 June 2010 regarding the current statutory provisions for recreational gold mining. As Minister of Energy and Resources I am responding to your email on behalf of the Prime Minister, Hon John Key, and my colleagues Hon Kate Wilkinson and Hon Nick Smith.

I am aware that hobby gold mining operations have been a popular recreational activity in the West Coast and Otago regions for many decades. I also appreciate that gold fossicking areas are the only places where hobby mining activities can be legally undertaken without the need for a mining permit.

I note your concern that gaining tenure to suitable land, by way of a mining permit, is becoming Increasingly problematical for some gold fossickers and metal detector users due to the relatively high permit application and compliance costs involved. You have suggested the introduction of something similar to a Miner's Right, as was granted under the provisions of the Mining Act 1971, might be a way around this.

At present mining permits are required to undertake recreational gold mining activities, such as beach sand and suction dredge gold mining. I can advise that my officials have recently undertaken a review of the allocation provisions for hobby gold mining as this activity would appear to carry an unnecessarily high compliance burden.

The allocation provisions for recreational gold mining will therefore be considered in the legislative and regulatory review that the Government is presently undertaking. Part of the process for this review is to disseminate a discussion document for public comment. Details of the discussion document will be made available on the Crown Minerals website www.crownminerals.govt.nz
I invite you to participate in that process by way of a submission when this document is released.

Hon Gerry Brownlee Minister of Energy and Resources

Private Bag 18041, Parliament Buildings, Wellington 6160, New Zealand. Telephone 6448176802 Facsimile 644 817 6502

Colin, good work!!
If all of the fossickers in New Zealand got together and started writing letters and making noise then the rules would soon be changed. As soon as the politicians see that changing the rules might get them some extra support next election, they'll think about getting off their backsides and doing something about it.
The squeaky door gets the oil.....

A petition would be a good place to start I'm guessing. If everyone on this forum got everyone they know that's into fossicking to sign up, there'd be a lot of signatures. There are a LOT of guys out there that don't have anything to do with the forums.
GT.

Hi Gavin, and all the members of this forum.

I applaud your suggestion that this forum starts a petition to gather signatures etc, as this step may help strengthen the cry for something to be done in the “Fossickers” favour.
If this cry is answered by the powers that be, then it should/may just alleviate some of the technical mining problems that could possibly arise to any of us as we apply the “Joys” ? Of our hobby. (like getting arrested, or having all your expensive gear confiscated, or smashed up.) of course there’s always the distant chance that the last could happen to you too.

I put forward the suggestion that all other gold minded forums in New Zealand should also be notified if a petition is imminently viable in the near future, with the suggestion that their memberships are also welcome to sign the petition that’s presented on this forum. (The more the merrier)

As to a volunteer needed to present it, Do we really need one ? apart from the forums own memberships signatures, which ( I presume) can then be electronically submitted to the Govt member involved in such things, and could possibly be done when their “New” fossicking document is up for public debate.

With that little bit of my chest, you may be interested to visit the link below, which a fellow member (“Mintcar“ ) alerted me to.

http://new.dpi.vic.gov.a...king/miners-rights-faqs

The site lays out all the rules that apply to the Aussie fossicker. (these“Aussie rules“ are very similar in all states.)
These fellers have got the Icing still on their cake.
Not like us, we haven’t even got any cake!

Another suggestion is, that if our petition should come to fruition,
it should maybe point this site out in a cover letter. ( or maybe somebody on the forum could even “Cull” some good points from it that suit our N.Z conditions, to accompany our petition. (so as to allow to have a good fruitful fossick around the “Whole” country)

I’ll leave this open, and entirely up to debate, and hopefully a suitable solution will be forthcoming soon.

Cheers---Colin.

HI Karl.
Guess youd be a good bloke to know in this game.
You may find that you grt a lot of a friends.

Cheers---Colin.