The Cononish mine lies in the shadow of Ben Lui

National park bosses have given the go-ahead for Scotland’s only working gold mine after cash pledges from the developers.

The Australian owners of the mine in Strathfillan in the southern Highlands are now expected to press ahead with the £80m project this summer.

The controversial Cononish mine lies in the shadow of munro Ben Lui in the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs national park.

Scotgold Resources will provide £200,000 to the local community, which supported the reopening of the mine, for a mining exhibition and ‘interpretive facility’, along with a £30,000 annual donation for five years to Strathfillan Community Development Trust once commercial production of gold begins.

The mining company will also have to lodge £1.3m bonds which will allow the national park authority to restore the site near Tyndrum if it is abandoned or Scotgold Resources fails to meet its obligations.

A management plan agreed for the Cononish Glen includes the maintenance of access for walkers and climbers, signs at the public car park at Dalrigh on the West Highland Way and additional waymarking on the glen track.

New fencing will also be put up to protect the habitat in the Ben Lui national nature reserve and site of special scientific interest.

The granting last October of planning permission for the mine reopening, which went against the national park’s policy guidelines, was made dependent on environmental agreements and improvements, which have now been agreed between the park’s officers and the company.

Tyndrum residents were mainly in favour of the development, which Scotgold Resources said will create 52 jobs.

But outdoor bodies were sceptical about the plans and opposed the application, which was refused in 2010. National park specialists in landscape, planning and ecology worked with the developer which agreed to reduce and reshape the spoil storage, or tailings management facility, and restore the land after use.

The second application halved the size of the TMF with a redesigned shape to fit the landscape and significant amounts of mining waste being deposited back underground. The application also included a 30-year commitment to enhance the wider Glen Cononish through native tree planting and other landscape and habitat improvements.

Gordon Watson, director of planning and rural development for the national park, said: “Although the national park authority approved the planning application last year, we had to secure the legal commitments to guarantee mitigation of any adverse environmental impacts the development could have on the landscape as well as contributions to local environmental and tourism projects.

“I’m extremely proud of the work we have achieved in a relatively short timeframe which has also met Scotgold’s aim to start the development this summer.

“We have negotiated with Scotgold to make sure there are wider social and economic benefits for the surrounding communities.

“At the same time, we have established funding and guarantees that will deliver successful restoration and conservation of the landscape during and after the life of the mine.

“This is a great example of how business can work with the public sector to facilitate a number of economic and environmental benefits ensuring the Park fully capitalises on the opportunities from the mine.

“Cononish will be the only operational gold mine in Scotland. By making sure all aspects of the design, operation and decommissioning are carefully managed, we believe we have achieved a best practice standard which should set a benchmark for future sustainable mining developments in sensitive rural areas.

“We look forward to a continued partnership between the National Park and Scotgold throughout the life of the gold mine and the restoration of Glen Cononish.”

Environment Minister Stewart Stevenson said: “It’s great to hear that Scotland’s first goldmine will be getting underway this summer in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs national park.

The mine is expected to be reopened in the summer. Photo: Helen Wilkinson CC-BY-SA-2.0

‪‪“This new investment for Scotland will bring welcome additional revenue to support the national park, while enhancing the sensitive environment in Cononish Glen in the long term.

“This exciting venture will also offer a welcome boost to the Scottish economy, worth a projected £80m, while 52 new jobs will be created.”‪

Scotgold has also agreed to pay a maximum of £117,000 towards the national park authority’s costs monitoring the development.