View source for Giles Creek mine

{{stub}}{{#badges: CoalNewZealand|Navbar-NZcoal}}The '''Giles Creek mine''' is an opencast sub-bituminous coal mine in the Giles Creek Valley near Reefton on the West Coast of the South Island. The mine is owned by [[Birchfield Coal]].

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==Background==
'''Location:''' Giles Creek Valley near Reefton on the West Coast of the South Island. Some or all of the 235 ha mine is on Department of Conservation land.<ref>Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, [http://www.pce.parliament.nz/assets/Uploads/Mining-DOC.pdf "Mining operations on Department of Conservation land"], accessed December 2012</ref><br>
'''Coordinates:''' -42.036799,171.799021<br>
'''Coal field:''' Inangahua<br>
'''Background:''' Started production in 1984<br>
'''Current owner:''' Birchfield Coal<ref>Ministry of Economic Development, [http://www.nzpam.govt.nz/cms/coal/coal-resources/operating-coal-mines "Operating coal mines"], Ministry of Economic Development website, accessed March 2012.</ref><br>
'''Status:''' Operating<br>
'''Production capacity:''' 500,000 tonnes/year<ref>Birchfield Coal, [http://www.birchfieldcoal.co.nz/text/about.html "About"], Birchfield Coal website, accessed April 2012.</ref><br>
'''Estimated recoverable reserves:''' 16 million tonnes<ref>Birchfield Coal, [http://www.birchfieldcoal.co.nz/text/coal.html "About our coal"], Birchfield Coal website, accessed April 2012.</ref><br>
'''Mining technique:''' Opencast. Shallow deposit exposed by removal of top soil. Coal removed by hydraulic diggers, screened and washed.<br>
'''Type of coal:''' Sub-bituminous, clean burning, low in sulfur<ref>Birchfield Coal, [http://www.birchfieldcoal.co.nz/text/coal.html "About our coal"], Birchfield Coal website, accessed April 2012.</ref><br>
Solid fuel calorific value (gross) 19.04 MJ/kg (Range for NZ coal 15.25–31.95 MJ/kg)<ref>Ministry for Economic Development, [http://www.med.govt.nz/sectors-industries/energy/energy-modelling/publications/energy-data-file/new-zealand-energy-data-file-2012 "Data Energy File"], accessed December 2012</ref><br>
'''Market information:''' Supplies the industrial, service and primary production sectors in Canterbury, Nelson and the West Coast. <ref>Birchfield Coal, [http://www.birchfieldcoal.co.nz/text/coal.html "About our coal"], Birchfield Coal website, accessed April 2012.</ref> May be used as a blend with faster burning, higher heat value coals.<ref>Birchfield Coal, [http://www.birchfieldcoal.co.nz/text/coal.html "About our coal"], Birchfield Coal website, accessed April 2012.</ref><br>
'''Environmental and/or health & safety issues:''' The company states that, “After the coal has been extracted the area is levelled and planted in native living forest.”<ref>Birchfield Coal Mines Ltd,[http://www.birchfieldcoal.co.nz/coal_fact_sheet.html "Birchfield Coal Facts"], accessed December 2012</ref>