A company wants to mine sand from the sea bed off the coast of Taranaki. However, the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) today refused to give permission to the company.
The sand in Taranaki is black because it contains iron ore. Iron ore can be used for making steel. The company planned to take 50 million tonnes of sand each year from the bottom of the sea, 22 km off the coast of Patea. The idea was to take out the iron ore and return 45 million tonnes of sand back to the sea. The iron ore would be sold, probably to Japan or China. The company would create many jobs in Patea and help New Zealand’s economy by $240m a year. Patea is a small town with high unemployment.
4,800 submissions were made to the Environment Protection Authority about these plans. 99% of the submissions were against the plans. People were worried about the environmental effects on the ocean, especially on the fishing. They were concerned too that dumping sand back into the water would make the water dirty.
Vocabulary
- seabed – bottom of the sea, sea floor
- to mine – to take minerals from the land
- permission – saying “Yes”
- Environment Protection Authority – a government organisation
- submissions – people can write to the EPA or speak to their committee
- dumping – throwing a large amount of material quickly without taking care