πΌ Gold mining regulation
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[0] => Gold is found in New Zealand either in quartz lodes or in alluvial deposits. Alluvial gold has been recovered by various methods - by 'panning' in a dish or pan; by 'sluicing' away less dense material from gravel faces; or by 'dredging' up gravel from riverbeds. In New Zealand most gold prospecting and mining was undertaken privately but as all precious metals belong to the Crown under the common law, rights to prospect or mine had to be granted by the Crown.
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[history] => In November 1852 a small gold rush occurred in the Coromandel area after the discovery of alluvial gold on land still held under native title, and although initially the New Ulster Government was reluctant to establish any regulations, potential conflicts between the prospectors and the Maori owners made establishment of an authoritative mining code essential. Prospecting regulations were issued on 27 November 1852 based on the mining ordinances of Victoria, Australia, and the surveyor and explorer Charles Heaphy was appointed the first Goldfields Commissioner to be responsible for issuing mining licenses and collecting prospecting license fees. These license fees were abolished a year later and replaced by a payment for the registration of a claim, as many prospectors simply abandoned the field when the fees became payable. However, by mid-1854, most of the miners had departed and Heaphy was recalled.
The first New Zealand Gold Fields and Gold Duty Acts introduced in 1858 were directly based on the Victorian Act of 1855 with its miners' rights, allowance for small individual claims, system of wardens, and gold export duty. Applications for the lease of Crown land for the purposes of gold mining were received by the Crown Lands Department. Any rents and royalties were to be paid to a Receiver of Land Revenue appointed by the Governor. Under the 1858 Gold Fields Act, the Governor could also delegate his powers in sections 3, 5 and 6 to the Provincial Superintendents.
The powers of management and regulation exercised by the Government under the Gold Fields Act 1862 included control over the structure of mining licenses, rents and leases, authority to sell trees and alter watercourses, and the introduction of a special system of justice under a warden who also acted as a Resident Magistrate.
In 1866 goldfield electorates for the General Assembly were created and in 1867, James Bradshaw, member of the House of Representatives for the Otago goldfields, was appointed as the Agent of the General Government to administer the mining areas on its behalf. The Otago Provincial Government refused to recognise Bradshaw’s authority, however, and in 1868 the Gold Fields Act Amendment Act was passed to strengthen the Government’s control over the administration of goldfield revenues.
From 1871 the Goldfields Committee of the House of Representatives began to take an interest in a number of administrative problems later to be the responsibility of the Mines Department, as well as fulfilling its role in reviewing the continual legislation on the goldfields.
In 1872 administration of the goldfields (i.e. the supervision of provincial activities) became the responsibility of the Under-Secretary of Gold Fields within the Public Works Department.
Mines Inspectors were first appointed under the 1874 Regulation of Mines Act, while with the abolishment of the provinces, the 1877 Mines Act enabled the Governor to set up mining districts with Mining Boards to oversee mining operations.
In 1873 the Gold Fields Branch was transferred back to the Crown Lands Department where it remained until being amalgamated with the Mines Department in 1878.
On 24 August 1878, James McKerrow, Secretary for Gold Fields reported the following as part of the 1878 Report on the Gold Fields of New Zealand:
"The advent of "The Mines Act, 1877," and consequent increased correspondence and business at Wellington, however, rendered necessary the establishment of a separate Chief Office, which has now under its control all the officers upon the gold fields, including Wardens, Receivers of Gold Revenue, Mining Registrars, and others, and the maintenance of constructed Government water-races; and all correspondence affecting the administration of the gold fields is now carried on from this office as a distinct department...".
The separate Mines Department was constituted on 1 February 1878.
The Reserves and Endowments in Mining Districts Act 1882 extended the operation of mining legislation to all public reserves and endowments within duly proclaimed districts. Under section 205 of the consolidating Mining Act of 1891, the Governor could proclaim any Native reserve to come under its operation and the Maori right to withhold their lands from mining was abandoned.
After the alluvial deposits were exhausted, gold continued to be recovered by the mercury-amalgamation method. In 1889 the cyanide process was successfully tested in New Zealand and in 1897 the Government bought the patent rights, which they then leased.
The gold dredge was invented in New Zealand, and from the 1880s the country was a world leader in their design, construction and operation with the world's first successful steam-powered dredge on Clutah River in 1881. A dredging boom lasted from 1898 to about 1913.
More recent developments in gold mining have included the reopening of the Martha Hill mine at Waihi in 1988, the commissioning of a dredge on the Grey River, the granting of licenses to redevelop a gold-scheelite deposit at Macrae’s Flat, Otago, and the reopening of the Waiuta mine at Reefton.
On 1 April 1978, the Mines Department was merged with the Ministry of Energy Resources and the New Zealand Electricity Department into the new Ministry of Energy. On 1 January 1990, the Ministry of Energy was in turn merged with the Ministry of Commerce, and became the Energy and Resources Division of the Ministry. The Ministry of Commerce was restructured on 1 October 1997 and the Ministry's previous divisions were disestablished and replaced with a new branch structure. The Energy and Resources Division's responsibilities were split between the Resources and Networks Branch and the Operations and Risk Management Branch.
The Crown Minerals Act 1991 allowed the appropriate Minister to designate any area of Crown land as a "gold fossicking area". In 1997, the 1991 Act was amended to allow the Minister of Conservation to refuse or restrict mining in certain categories of land including national parks, reserves and conservation areas.
In February 2000, the Ministry of Commerce became the Ministry of Economic Development as a result of the Ministry of Economic Development Act 2000. Within the Ministry of Economic Development, the Crown Minerals Group became responsible for management of New Zealand's Crown-owned petroleum, natural gas and mineral estates. The 2003 organisation review of the Group was in response to a rapidly changing environment of rising gold prices and diminishing petroleum reserves, and established a new structure based around the Group's three core functions of policy advice, operational regulation, and promotion of investment in the mineral estate.
Legislation:
1858 Gold Fields Act
1858 Gold Duty Act
1862 Gold Fields Act
1868 Gold Fields Act Amendment Act
1873 Gold Mining Districts Act
1874 Regulation of Mines Act
1877 Mines Act
1882 Reserves and Endowments in Mining Districts Act
1891 Mining Act
1991 Crown Minerals Act
1997 Crown Minerals Act 1991 Amendment Act
2000 Ministry of Economic Development Act
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Show History
In November 1852 a small gold rush occurred in the Coromandel area after the discovery of alluvial gold on land still held under native title, and although initially the New Ulster Government was reluctant to establish any regulations, potential conflicts between the prospectors and the Maori owners made establishment of an authoritative mining code essential. Prospecting regulations were issued on 27 November 1852 based on the mining ordinances of Victoria, Australia, and the surveyor and explorer Charles Heaphy was appointed the first Goldfields Commissioner to be responsible for issuing mining licenses and collecting prospecting license fees. These license fees were abolished a year later and replaced by a payment for the registration of a claim, as many prospectors simply abandoned the field when the fees became payable. However, by mid-1854, most of the miners had departed and Heaphy was recalled.
The first New Zealand Gold Fields and Gold Duty Acts introduced in 1858 were directly based on the Victorian Act of 1855 with its miners' rights, allowance for small individual claims, system of wardens, and gold export duty. Applications for the lease of Crown land for the purposes of gold mining were received by the Crown Lands Department. Any rents and royalties were to be paid to a Receiver of Land Revenue appointed by the Governor. Under the 1858 Gold Fields Act, the Governor could also delegate his powers in sections 3, 5 and 6 to the Provincial Superintendents.
The powers of management and regulation exercised by the Government under the Gold Fields Act 1862 included control over the structure of mining licenses, rents and leases, authority to sell trees and alter watercourses, and the introduction of a special system of justice under a warden who also acted as a Resident Magistrate.
In 1866 goldfield electorates for the General Assembly were created and in 1867, James Bradshaw, member of the House of Representatives for the Otago goldfields, was appointed as the Agent of the General Government to administer the mining areas on its behalf. The Otago Provincial Government refused to recognise Bradshaw’s authority, however, and in 1868 the Gold Fields Act Amendment Act was passed to strengthen the Government’s control over the administration of goldfield revenues.
From 1871 the Goldfields Committee of the House of Representatives began to take an interest in a number of administrative problems later to be the responsibility of the Mines Department, as well as fulfilling its role in reviewing the continual legislation on the goldfields.
In 1872 administration of the goldfields (i.e. the supervision of provincial activities) became the responsibility of the Under-Secretary of Gold Fields within the Public Works Department.
Mines Inspectors were first appointed under the 1874 Regulation of Mines Act, while with the abolishment of the provinces, the 1877 Mines Act enabled the Governor to set up mining districts with Mining Boards to oversee mining operations.
In 1873 the Gold Fields Branch was transferred back to the Crown Lands Department where it remained until being amalgamated with the Mines Department in 1878.
On 24 August 1878, James McKerrow, Secretary for Gold Fields reported the following as part of the 1878 Report on the Gold Fields of New Zealand:
"The advent of "The Mines Act, 1877," and consequent increased correspondence and business at Wellington, however, rendered necessary the establishment of a separate Chief Office, which has now under its control all the officers upon the gold fields, including Wardens, Receivers of Gold Revenue, Mining Registrars, and others, and the maintenance of constructed Government water-races; and all correspondence affecting the administration of the gold fields is now carried on from this office as a distinct department...".
The separate Mines Department was constituted on 1 February 1878.
The Reserves and Endowments in Mining Districts Act 1882 extended the operation of mining legislation to all public reserves and endowments within duly proclaimed districts. Under section 205 of the consolidating Mining Act of 1891, the Governor could proclaim any Native reserve to come under its operation and the Maori right to withhold their lands from mining was abandoned.
After the alluvial deposits were exhausted, gold continued to be recovered by the mercury-amalgamation method. In 1889 the cyanide process was successfully tested in New Zealand and in 1897 the Government bought the patent rights, which they then leased.
The gold dredge was invented in New Zealand, and from the 1880s the country was a world leader in their design, construction and operation with the world's first successful steam-powered dredge on Clutah River in 1881. A dredging boom lasted from 1898 to about 1913.
More recent developments in gold mining have included the reopening of the Martha Hill mine at Waihi in 1988, the commissioning of a dredge on the Grey River, the granting of licenses to redevelop a gold-scheelite deposit at Macrae’s Flat, Otago, and the reopening of the Waiuta mine at Reefton.
On 1 April 1978, the Mines Department was merged with the Ministry of Energy Resources and the New Zealand Electricity Department into the new Ministry of Energy. On 1 January 1990, the Ministry of Energy was in turn merged with the Ministry of Commerce, and became the Energy and Resources Division of the Ministry. The Ministry of Commerce was restructured on 1 October 1997 and the Ministry's previous divisions were disestablished and replaced with a new branch structure. The Energy and Resources Division's responsibilities were split between the Resources and Networks Branch and the Operations and Risk Management Branch.
The Crown Minerals Act 1991 allowed the appropriate Minister to designate any area of Crown land as a "gold fossicking area". In 1997, the 1991 Act was amended to allow the Minister of Conservation to refuse or restrict mining in certain categories of land including national parks, reserves and conservation areas.
In February 2000, the Ministry of Commerce became the Ministry of Economic Development as a result of the Ministry of Economic Development Act 2000. Within the Ministry of Economic Development, the Crown Minerals Group became responsible for management of New Zealand's Crown-owned petroleum, natural gas and mineral estates. The 2003 organisation review of the Group was in response to a rapidly changing environment of rising gold prices and diminishing petroleum reserves, and established a new structure based around the Group's three core functions of policy advice, operational regulation, and promotion of investment in the mineral estate.
Legislation:
1858 Gold Fields Act
1858 Gold Duty Act
1862 Gold Fields Act
1868 Gold Fields Act Amendment Act
1873 Gold Mining Districts Act
1874 Regulation of Mines Act
1877 Mines Act
1882 Reserves and Endowments in Mining Districts Act
1891 Mining Act
1991 Crown Minerals Act
1997 Crown Minerals Act 1991 Amendment Act
2000 Ministry of Economic Development Act
- π’ Ministry of Commerce, Mining Inspection Office, Dunedin (1990 ‑ 1997)
- π’ Waihi Wardens Court (1902 ‑ 1973)
- π’ Ministry of Commerce-Energy & Resources Division-Mining Inspectorate, Northern Region (1990 ‑ 1997)
- π’ Ministry of Commerce Energy and Resources Division Mining Inspection Group, Hamilton (1990 ‑ 1997)
- π’ Paeroa Wardens Court (1892 ‑ 1973)
- π’ Ministry of Energy, Mines Division, Huntly, Mines and Quarries Inspectorate (1978 ‑ 1989)
- π’ Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, National Office (2012 ‑ )
- π’ Department of Lands and Survey, Wellington District Office (1858 ‑ 1872)
- π’ Taranaki Provincial Government (1858 ‑ 1876)
- π’ Energy Department (1979 ‑ 1980)
- π’ Wellington Province Government (1858 ‑ 1876)
- π’ Nelson Provincial Government (1858 ‑ 1876)
- π’ Department of Internal Affairs, Head Office (1852 ‑ 1858)
- π’ Auckland Provincial Government (1858 ‑ 1876)
- π’ Ministry of Commerce, Energy & Resources Division, Head Office (1990 ‑ 1997)
- π’ Hawke's Bay Provincial Government (1858 ‑ 1876)
- π’ Ministry of Energy - Mines Division (1978 ‑ 1987)
- π’ Ministry of Energy, Head Office (1978 ‑ 1989)
- π’ Ministry of Economic Development, Head Office (1997 ‑ 2012)
- π’ Mines Department, Head Office (1878 ‑ 1978)
- π’ Provincial Council, Invercargill (1861 ‑ 1870)
- π’ Hamiltons Warden's Court (1864 ‑ 1900)
- π’ Otago Provincial Government, Gold Fields Department (1862 ‑ 1877)
- π’ Ministry of Works and Development, Head Office (1872 ‑ 1873)
- π’ Crown Lands Department, Head Office (1858 ‑ 1872)
- π’ Crown Lands Department, Head Office (1873 ‑ 1878)
- π’ Department of Internal Affairs, Head Office (1852 ‑ 1858)
Show 23 items
- π Mines 2 (1885 ‑ 1977)
- π Energy and Resources (2008 ‑ )
- π Crown Lands (2) (1873 ‑ 1878)
- π Crown Lands (1) (1858 ‑ 1864)
- π Public Works (1872 ‑ 1873)
- π Colonial Secretary (1852 ‑ 1858)
- π Mines 1 (1879 ‑ 1884)
- π Energy (1978 ‑ 2008)