Approvals in place for Nugget gold project

Local authorities have approved an application by Toronto-based gold explorer Nugget Resources (NUG-V) to start underground work at its Hill End property in central New South Wales.

Australia’s federal and state laws leave approval for these works in the hands of regional municipal governments. The municipal council of Evans Shire, where the project is situated, gave its consent for development in late June.

The gold prospect is on a ridge where earlier operators had driven ramps from an adit in the side of the hill. Nugget’s plan is to rehabilitate the existing workings and drift from along the known gold-bearing vein to about a 270-metre vertical depth below the crest of the ridge. It expects to treat limited tonnage with a simple gravity concentrator.

Six departments of the New South Wales state government examined the development application before the local council approved it. The application included a statement of environmental effects, produced by an independent consultant.

After Nugget applied for mining leases over the project area and an exploration licence over a larger area surrounding it, there was a 3-month waiting period during which interested parties could file claims under the Native Title Act. No claims appeared.