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AN IRISH PROSPECTING company is planning to develop what could be a “new European gold-mining district” yielding over 500 tonnes of the precious metal along the northern border.
Gold exploration and mining company Conroy Gold and Natural Resources is putting together its scheme to build Ireland’s first commercial gold mine at Clontibret in Co Monaghan along a nearly 50km “gold trend” stretching from Co Armagh to Co Cavan.
The Dublin-based company today announced its two-step plan for the Clontibret site, the first stage of which involved building a starter pit – a shallow mine - at an estimated cost of about €32 million.
Conroy Gold said the first pit would concentrate on “a high-grade, densely drilled portion of the resource” that would generate positive cash flows within the first two years of its operation.
The second phase would involve a possible underground mine, as well as more surface pits, to get to gold found 12m below the surface during earlier drilling.
A European gold district in Ireland
Chairman Prof Richard Conroy said the Clontibret plans were ”set within what we believe is the beginning of a new European gold mining district with exploration and conceptual studies by the company suggesting the potential for 15-20 million ounces of gold within the 30-mile gold trend and also possibly zinc and other mineral potential.”
The company said it was continuing to explore along the trend and it had earmarked other potential mining sites like its find at Clay Lake, to the northeast of Clontibret, where there was “potential for high tonnage and overall gold content”.
And there’s zinc there too
A large zinc “anomaly” – nearly one tenth the size of the entire county – had also been found to the south of the Clay Lake site.
The Clontibret location was the site of an antimony mine in the 1800s but more recent drilling in the area revealed major gold deposits in the region.
On its website, Conroy Gold cited Ireland’s “user-friendly legislation”, tax incentives and ease of exploration as among the reasons for setting up mining operations in the country.
READ: Monaghan mine could end up producing €70 million worth of gold per year
READ: More positive results from tests at Monaghan gold mine site
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Good news for employment as there will be many opportunities for different trades.
Not really Shane, gold mining is not labour intensive, especially open cast mining.
Actually when they plan to go underground they will require various trades, plumbers, carpenters, structural engineers, surveyors, and the list goes on. Tara Mines has over 700 employee..
Have you seen, how they mine and the damage it does? I’d rather grow trees, crops and leave the planet untouched!
Precious metals have been mined for hundreds of years and in this example Gold is used in the very device you are using to make this post, it is used on processors and other electronic components such as medical devices which may save your life some day.
Gold mining will not be as harsh as drilling for oil or as dangerous as Coal mining. This is a good opportunity for employment.
Lets do more damage to the earth so, just for a bit of gold and get rich. Money and greed, is more important in the long run and to hell with environment!
We are not doing any damage to the earth. What a ridiculous notion. The earth had withstood a lot worse than some gold mining. It’s had planets smash into it and is still here. The earth will be here long after we are all gone. And it’ll be just fine.
Doctor knows best
Farming is one of the biggest polluters in Ireland and poisons our land and waterways regularly. Seems a bit odd to get upset about strictly monitored mining.
True, at least you can eat what they produce and being concerned for the planet you live on? Isn’t a crime, we are all for jobs and the economy despite our concerns!
Also, haven’t noticed any widespread uproar about the tonnes of toxic sludge being deposited here and there from the illegal diesel laundering. Not many jobs there.
There you go again Steven,banging on about the planet. What, exactly, do you think is going to happen to the planet? That’ll it’ll melt and disappear?
No doubt its all been given away for free like our oil and gas.
Not really the same, it isn’t the government’s to give away!
Yes it is… mineral.deposits underground belong to the state
Had a look at their cores a few months ago. They really did well on a shoe string budget and they’re very talented Geologists. This is good news! Why is everybody complaining about “giving it away”?
What would you have them do? They went through all of the proper procedures, spent a fortune and risked everything to try and find these gold deposits.
Que the protesters who would prefer to leave it in the ground rather that bring much need jobs and investment into rural ireland.
Stupidest statement of the year, Gold is not edible and only benefits the filthy rich. How much fossil fuel, will be burnt to extract it and you can only wear it! I hope you’ll be wearing it, it feeds you and keeps you from going hungry in the future!
I may be open to correction but I would say there too many filty rich people in rural co Monaghan. Hopefully if this mine get up and going it will create employment which in turn will put money in people’s pockets to spend in the local economy. But sure hardly to worried about that stephen. You probably can go and hug a tree and make a living out of it.
Gold has much more uses than just being worn, from high end electric guitars to smartphones, electronics and more
There are many sensible people who have the foresight to realise that after the mining is finished there will be a huge eyesore on the landscape with good farmland left barren and of no use to anyone ever again. After the land has been ravaged for a small quantity of a metal useful for very little (except keeping it locked away somewhere in a vault doing nothing) the only time you’ll hear about the mine again is when someone drowns in it. People who may oppose this are not NIMBYS either. There is no comparison between opposing wind turbines etc which can be removed easily, and a big hole in the ground that will be there forever. It is important to generate jobs and wealth in rural areas, but it should be done in a sustainable manner with foresight.
Imagination and time can cure such problems. The Eden Project in Cornwall in located in a vast, worked out quarry and look at what has been achieved. Imagination, planning and the will to work at it is the key.
“On its website, Conroy Gold cited Ireland’s “user-friendly legislation”, tax incentives and ease of exploration as among the reasons for setting up mining operations in the country.”
have they discovered a new method of extraction which does not leave a vast polluting reservoir of
toxic chemicals then.?
As far as I am aware,the process of refining the ore causes pollution, particularly when the ore goes through a smelting process which heats the ore to melt the metal and release it from the surrounding material. The smelters release large amounts of lead as well as nitrogen and sulfur, which are returned to the earth in the form of acid rain.
Once ore is gathered from mines, it can be extracted by using different methods. One such method, called leaching, is a low-cost method of removing ore from waste. During the process, workers pile low-grade gold ore into an outdoor heap and put a cyanide solution on it. The cyanide then dissolves the gold, which it runs down a slope into reservoirs before it is collected. In some countries, environmental laws require that the slopes and collection vats are impenetrable so that poisons cannot be released into the ground. However, the lack of protections in other countries mean that the poisons are often leaked into the soil. These materials then make their way into local water supplies, lakes, rivers and streams. Drainage of this type raises acid levels in lakes which are harmful to both animals and people.
Because a small amount of gold is extracted from large areas of land, large piles of toxic tailings and waste are the result of gold mines. These piles can cause heavy metals and other toxins to penetrate the soil ,preventing plant life or creating high levels of toxins in plants. Animals who eat these plants can then be subject to disease or other health problems. Heavy metals and toxins can remain in soils for decades after mining, which leaves the areas unsuitable for use by humans and animals for some time.
Read more : http://www.ehow.com/list_6811335_types-pollution-generated-gold-mining.html
When I went up to visit them a few months ago to see their cores they also talked about their extraction and refinery.
They plan on using a state of the art microbial elution process. You use genetically modified microbes that will consume the arsenic and remove it from the Gold. The arsenic issue is the major problem with Gold. The other benefit is that the gold is carbonate hosted. Carbonates are much more benign chemically to the environment. If this was Sierra Leone and they were leaching Gold out of ultramafics I would agree with you. But Conroy are taking all possible steps to reduce pollution.
Stephen, are you married?? What’s your ring made of??
Shup ya hippy.
Gold doesn’t just benefit the filthy rich. Its a commodity like any other. You can buy some. Are you filthy rich?
To expand the point, lower gold prices result in cheaper electronics. Electronics make all our lives more comfortable.
In my youth ( fado fado) we used to pan for gold in the Croghan mountain, for fun. We used to find it too. It was also possible to obtain gold by the fleece method. All the nonsense we were taught in school about Ireland having no natural resources was a load of rubbish – and De Valera and those who followed him were responsible for that. There is, gold, silver and copper (whether or not in commercial amounts is debateable). We also have excellent supplies of anthracite, although the last mine for that may be closed. The closed minded concentration on agriculture and bugger all else has served this country ill.
An example of close-mindedness would be to allow mines to replace farmland and be located in areas where people live. Most mines in the world are located in very remote locations and in areas where the land can’t be used for much else. We forget how lucky we are in Ireland to have such fertile land and a perfect climate for farming. It would destroy this country to allow large open-cast mines. It’s a different thing altogether if the mine consisted of shafts underground and would have a minimum impact. The pollution is another thing that has to be thought about. There are people who reject mining in Australia! A vast country where the mines are located in the middle of nowhere. They oppose them because they are concerned about the fact that some of the good farmland in Australia will be destroyed forever for a short-term financial gain. Research the Liverpool Plains area.
Stony Grey Soil me arse!
I foresee NIMBY’s, Greens, S2S, crusties and the like putting the kibosh on this project!
Mining is detrimental to an area. It destroys so much vegetation. Pollutes the environment. Not sure if this ‘easy access’ to mining is something to promote. Why is mining highly regulated elsewhere?
The current Government have opened up the licensing process for Gold mining and have been actively attending international seminars touting about Ireland’s gold deposits. Anyone remember that low-flying plane going around the country with the weird long attune? That was part of the Tellus border project where the country’s border counties were scanned for mineral and metal deposits.
If you don’t think that this was to open up Ireland to large industrial scale mining then look below.
http://www.tellusborder.eu/News/Fraser+Institute+ranks+Ireland+fourth+in+world+as+a+place+to+invest+in+mining.htm
I am not against attracting inward investment one bit – but a ‘potential’ inward of investment of just €1 million while theses companies stand to make tens of millions – that’s not good return IMHO
Quick….who can we give it to
Effin hypocrites against mining while they write on their mineral filled phones/iPads etc…
We’ve discovered a natural resource. Next step is to figure out how we give it away to Johnny Foreigner for free. Gas, oil, wind, water coming up soon, why not add gold to the list?
I forgot fishing…
Why not the Sultan of Brunei? There’s a lad who likes a bit of gold.
I hope the 9 o’clock News uses Spandau Ballet as the backing track to the story.
Giving it away was my first thought too ! Who sha we give it to ???
Open cast mine is not an option in Ireland due to the unpredictable rain. Extremely risky!! I would rather move far away from there if there will be a gold mine. Dip into some research before you cheer for your gold rings!
old news
lets see how much the irish people get
Old news lets see How much goes back to our people NONE
When have you given anything to our people Ben? Get off your arse, create some jobs and wealth. Open a mine.
So for all this gold the plan is to destroy Mother Eire a bit more.
Why not value the gold in the ground and create money based on that for all of us as a sovereign nation?
Anyone with old knowledge knows who is the Guardian of the gold and precious metals. Have they asked permission? Of course not.
“Old knowledge ” “Guardian of the precious metals “. Oh no, Catherine, say it isn’t so.
Who does the gold belong to? I thought anything you get in Ireland belongs to Ireland/Irish government or something? Genuine questions there, not trying to be smart. So did the government ask this company to do it or is this company taking it upon themselves to go gold mining? Who gets what out of this endeavour??
Do you need to ask.? there will be sweet f*uck all for the taxpayers-that’s a certainty-except a huge reservoir of toxic chemicals like the Silvermines in Nenagh. Do we ever learn.??
The constitution will tell you the answer, but seen as its generally ignored by the government anyway, it may not reflect what will happen in the real world.
Sshhhh. Is that the sound of freedom I hear coming from the west?
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