"It's hard to explain the feeling," opal miner Chris Cheal says.

"It's one of the best natural highs you can get when you come across a pocket of opal. It's better than winning lotto, because it's like you've earned it because you've worked for it."

Mr Cheal, 42, has been mining for opals for two decades. He moved to Lightning Ridge in north-west New South Wales as a shearer but soon was struck by "opal fever".

"I think everyone in Australia has got the right to come here and peg a claim and have a go," he says.

"That's what Australia's about, it's about having a fair go and the little bloke should be entitled to that. I'm very passionate about it and I love Lightning Ridge and I love doing what I'm doing."

But Mr Cheal says miners like him are a dying breed, and that's putting the future of "The Ridge" in doubt.

He has taken me and a cameraman six metres underground on the outskirts of Lightning Ridge to show us one of his two mines.

Gone are the pick and shovel; in its place is a super digger, a piece of heavy equipment he built himself.

Mr Cheal says increased expenses of running machinery like this, along with a decreased opal price, have pushed the industry to the brink. He has already taken up a job at a coal mine almost 300 kilometres away to ensure a steady cash flow.

Chris Cheal operates his super digger underground. ( ABC News: Liv Casben )

"I guess I'm really fortunate that I've got a good job," he says.

"It's great to know that you are going to make some money every week, because here mining for yourself, you can go months, you can go years without getting paid.

"All the while the costs are coming out of your pocket when you've got some hungry mouths to feed."

He blames the NSW Government for increasing registration prices and says the Department of Trade and Investment has created too much red tape.

The cost to register a mineral claim here has also blown out from $435 last year to $1230.

Mr Cheal says a "sunset clause" mooted by the NSW Government is also creating uncertainty in the industry. The clause would see a time limit placed on the life of a mine.

Miners are also waiting for a compensation system between miners and landholders to be settled on.

"It just seems to me they're pulling the rug out from under us, which is a shame because this is one of the few places left in the world that you can go peg a claim," he says.

His view is shared by hundreds of miners. Around 800 signatures were gathered at a recent public meeting that was set up to draw attention to the miners' concerns and the impact it could have on the community.

Justine Buckley examines one of her pieces in her opal shop in Lightning Ridge. ( ABC News: Liv Casben )

It wasn't only miners who turned up. Justine Buckley was there too.

She runs one of 15 opal retailers in town and her business depends on the rare gem. She is also a member of the local tourism board.

There are dozens of entries in her shop's visitors' book, praising the opals as "beautiful gems" and "utterly mouth-watering".

But she wonders how long before tourism is affected.

"The mining has reduced, the supply of opals has reduced and as of yet it hasn't actually affected the tourists but it will," she says.

Miners sort through rocks and look for opals in Lightning Ridge. ( ABC News: Brant Cumming )

Local councillor and former mayor Ian Woodcock says a decline in opal mining is already taking its toll on business.

"I came here in the early years when we seen it go up and up and up and everyone was wondering how far it could go," he says.

"We've seen it reach its peak, then we've watched it gradually deteriorate, and too quickly."

As much as he loves it, Chris Cheal will not be encouraging his three children to follow him down the mines; he thinks the future is too uncertain.

I ask him when he will make a decision on his future.

"I don't know whether I would put a time limit on it just yet, but if things keep going the way they're going I guess I'd give it a couple of years," he says.

"If I can't mine, I won't stay here. There's no point."

With many more like him sharing that sentiment, that is what has locals so worried.