October 2015

Dave Craw (University of Otago) is supervising undergraduate student, Shanna Law, in a study of natural colonisation by native salt-tolerant plants at an abandoned placer gold mine site at Springvale in Central Otago. The plants are rare and endangered, which has prompted the Department of Conservation to purchase the mine site for a Scientific Reserve. This research is part of an on-going study of potential biodiversity enhancement by preservation or development of diverse habitats during mine site rehabilitation. Shanna’s research results were presented at the AusIMM Conference in Dunedin in August 2015.