Resources Minister Tim Pallas opens up gold and copper mining exploration in Stavely Arc across western Victoria

Victorian Treasurer and Resources Minister Tim Pallas announced in Ararat on Friday that the government would promote 11 gold and copper mining exploration tenements in a 9500 square kilometre area called the ‘Stavely Arc’.

The arc stretches from Wyperfield National Park near Warracknabeal in the north to Terang in the south, with Hamilton and Balmoral inside the western border and Horsham, Ararat and Stawell inside the eastern border.

Mr Pallas said the mining tenements would only have the chance of resulting in a new mine in the long term but exploration would soon bring new economic activity.

“The exploration will mean low-impact drilling and other forms of non-intrusive investigation for mineral wealth in this area,” he said.

“What we are hoping to find is gold, copper and other rare metals. What it will mean for people in this community is more wealth and opportunity.”

Mr Pallas said the licence application and monitoring process for mineral exploration would respect the environment and farmers’ land rights, promising a “different approach” than in the past.

“We will be making sure that when we explore and utilise our mineral wealth that we do it in a way that has the public licence of the community affected,” he said.

“The Mineral Resources Sustainable Development Act requires governments to engage with the community, to make sure there is an understanding of what is happening, and also under these tenements we will require there to be agreements between land owners and the companies looking to do low-impact investigations.

“There will be no exploration in National Parks or State Parks, which is about preserving our environmental heritage.”

Councils from across western Victoria attended the launch, along with Victorian Farmers Federation president David Jochinke.

“We want to make sure that farmers have their rights protected throughout this whole process,” Mr Jochinke said.

“The discussion right now is about exploration. When it gets to mining it opens a whole new conversation about compensation.”

Stawell-based mining company Navarre Minerals welcomed the announcement.

Navarre managing director Geoff McDermott said the state government’s TARGET program would provide financial and technological assistance to mining companies looking to explore in western Victoria.

“We’re going to get this new geological information, along with any other company that is successful in applying for exploration, that would not normally be available to companies our size,” he said.

“This is the kind of information that you would expect to get with BHP Billiton or Rio Tinto, and so that allows us to focus in on the key areas where we think there are mineral deposits.”