The benefits for visitors and residents from the island’s countryside needs to be balanced against the commercial benefits of mining.
Manx National Heritage director Edmund Southworth said MNH supported efforts to ensure a diverse and sustainable economy, adding the challenge was ‘to ensure established parts of the visitor economy and the rich environment are not damaged by new initiatives’.
The Department of Economic Development is about to issue licences at Snaefell, Sartfell, Glen Rushen and Glen Crammag to companies interested in carrying out initial prospecting.
Mr Southworth said: ‘Prospecting is planned on some of the island’s most sensitive areas of landscape and as guardians of the island’s landscape, MNH was consulted in advance of DED announcing their plans for prospecting, so there have been no surprises and we will provide advice every step of the way.’
He said if plans change, to include invasive prospecting techniques or commercial mining, MNH would expect a full environmental impact assessment to be completed as part of the planning process, including the impact on archaeology, biodiversity, ecology, drainage and landscape.
‘Prospectors will have to demonstrate that they understand the significance of the area in which they plan to work and develop their strategies accordingly,’ he said.
He said the island was ‘no stranger to mining’ with the Laxey Wheel ‘one of only a few large scale reminders of this heritage’.
