Ben Lui. The reopened gold mine would be on the route most walkers use to the munro
A national park planning chief has recommended plans for reopening a Highland gold mine be turned down.
Gordon Watson, director of planning and rural development for the Loch Lomond & the Trossachs National Park Authority said the project, at Cononish in the shadow of the 1,130m (3,707ft) munro Ben Lui, would have a long-term detrimental effect on the area, on the edge of the national park.
Australian-owned Scotgold Resources Ltd submitted the plan to rework the old mine at Cononish, under Beinn Chuirn, which was last used more than 10 years ago.
The entrance to the Cononish gold mine. Photo: Helen Wilkinson CC-BY-SA-2.0
Mr Watson’s recommendation will be considered by a full meeting of the national park authority’s board in a week’s time. There will be a site visit and a hearing where the company and its supporters can make representations. Objectors, including the John Muir Trust, will also be able to put their case.
In a statement, the planning director said he had concerns about the significant long-term visual impact and also the effect on the landscape and recreation. These impacts would be significant both during the proposed 10-year life of the mine and during its long-term restoration.
There was uncertainty, he said, about the predicted economic benefits – Scotgold Resources said the project would lead to the creation of 50 to 60 jobs for local residents.
He also said the proposal goes against the aims of the area’s national-park designation. The National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000 states conservation must be given more weight in any consideration where there is a conflict with other aims.
The proposal involves boring ore to extract the gold and silver and involves surface workings including a large processing building and waste storage facility known as the tailings management facility. The area covered by the proposed surface operations is about 39 ha (96 acres), including a large processing and storage building which would measure 100m long and 14m in height.
Scotgold Resources had not responded to a request for a statement at the time of publication.
