| Existing Effects of Waihi Operations on the Environment | WNP Wharekirauponga Underground Mine - Assessment of Effects of Discharges to Air | 4397169-66885702-23 | | 35 6.2 OGNZL Air Quality Monitoring Programme 6.2.1 Current air quality monitoring sites OGNZL does not currently monitor air quality in the vicinity of the Willows Road site which lies approximately 2km to the northeast of Waihi town boundary in a rural farmland setting. However, OGNZL and predecessors have been monitoring deposited dust in the vicinity of the Waihi Gold Mine since 1982 and TSP since 2005. Over the years, new monitoring sites have been added and others removed to accommodate changes in the mining operation and the locations of sensitive receptors. Monitoring of PM10 and respirable silica has also been carried out biennially along with other specific monitoring of some contaminants. During 2020, OGNZL operated a total of 11 permanent monitoring sites of which 8 are used to measure deposited dust and 6 are used to measure TSP. The TSP monitoring sites are located in Waihi township and/or close to Martha Pit. Meteorological parameters are measured at one location (Met Station 6.63). The locations of the current monitoring sites (with windrose overlaid) are shown in Figure 6-1. A description of each site is provided in Table 6-1 of the Waihi North Project Air Discharge Assessment-Waihi Facilities Report (Beca, 2022). Figure 6-1 Locations of current air quality and meteorological monitoring sites around Waihi Mine (Source: OGNZL) 6.3 Results of Monitoring around Waihi Mine The results of long-term air discharge monitoring around the Waihi Mine site provide a good indication of the effects of emissions of the key contaminants (deposited dust, TSP, PM2.5 and PM10 and silica) from a significantly larger scale of activity within a more sensitive environment than will occur at the Willows Road site during construction. These results therefore represent a likely worst-case scenario of the effects of project activities on local air quality.
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