WORK TO REOPEN MINE.

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27396, 8 July 1954, Page 14

WORK TO REOPEN MINE.

Government Reasons For Abandonment

EXPLANATION BY MR SULLIVAN (New Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON, July 7. The Government’s decision to abandon its attempt to reopen the old Tyneside colliery, near Greyrhouth, was explained today by the Minister of Mines (Mr W. Sullivan).

He said that after many years of investigation the project was authorised in 1950, and the opinion of the Mines Department at that time was that the outcome of the venture was problematical and depended on the condition of the old workings and the rate of -the inflow of water. There was also doubt whether the water came solely from the surface or from the Grey river as well in times of flood. “It was found fairly early that the inflow of water was very much greater than at first thought, but, in spite of this, dewatering was carried out to a lower point in the workings than was reached during the unsuccessful attempt in 1930,” said the Minister. During the heavy rainfall and flood last month the water rose rapidly in the mine, and the pumps had to be withdrawn. One pump could not be recovered quickly enough, but the I electric motor and starter equipment were rescued. It was estimated that the inflow at that time was 150,000 gallons an hour. There was a strong possibility that, in addition to surface seepage, water also entered the mine through the strata from the flooded Grey river, and it was significant that at the times of the 1930 flooding the final inrush that submerged the pumps coincided with a high flood in the river, and in the 1908 flooding the inrush occurred also at flood peak.

Main Purpose of Work The main purpose of the dewatering was to release for mining a block of between 200,000 and 300.000 tons of barrier coal between the Tyneside and Wallsend workings. The prospects of recovering any coal from the Tyneside area itself were never regarded with any confidence. The Mines Department now felt that the probability of large inrushes of water from the Grey river in time of high flood Was too strong to be discarded, and the department was not prepared to take the risk of interfering with the safety barrier between the two workings. / In those circumstances there was no alternative but to accept the, recommendation of the department and abandon the work.

“The project was a marginal one at the start,” Mr Sullivan said “but it was worth a trial, and it has been given a fair trial.” The 14 men working at Tyneside would be employed at the Wallsend mine. Expenditure on Tyneside was £30.658. Coal sales were £10.408. leaving a net expenditure of £20,250. Plant and equipment to the 'value of about £5OOO would be recovered, leaving a sum of, roughly, £15,250 as the loss on the operation. These were not the final, exact figures, but were near enough for all practical purposes, the Minister said.