More than 3,200 people have voted on the Central App poll asking how they felt about the proposed Bendigo gold mine by Santana Minerals.

A majority 64 percent were against the mine, a further 15 percent very concerned, and only 19 percent supported it.

Last weekend lobby group Sustainable Tarras Inc shared the Central App’s poll on social media, encouraging people to respond, saying “and tell others in your household who might have an opinion”. 

Meanwhile, the Wānaka App ran the same poll and has so far received 182 responses, with an equal number in support and against.

Sustainable Tarras organised two “urgent public meetings” in Dunedin and Wānaka this past week, and questions were asked about why Santana wasn’t invited and why the meetings weren’t held in the towns mostly affected by the commercial mine.

A panel of its own experts spoke at the meetings, including Dunedin MP Rachel Brooking, environmental historian Dr Jonathan West, and Matt Sole from the Central Otago Environmental Society.

Landscape architect Di Lucas addressed the Wānaka meeting, along with RMA lawyer Rob Enright and Green Party List MP and ecologist Lan Pham.

Sustainable Tarras group member Suze Keith said the Dunedin meeting went well and the audience was super engaged, while Wanaka’s meeting had more than 200 people registered.

“There is clearly a great deal of concern out there,”she said.

Santana has said while the project would be assessed under the fast-track approval process - which aims to streamline projects of national significance - there was mandated legislation and standards that would need to be met, including the Resource Management Act and associated regulations and national policy statements. 

Santana Minerals has held its own public drop-in sessions at Tarras and Cromwell to discuss the project, with two more planned in coming weeks.

Click on our past story to cast your vote on the proposal. Goldmine meetings in Central Otago heating up