Resources tagged with "Mining"
Issues tagged Mining
AJ Gold Mine: SummaryThe Alaska Juneau (AJ) mine operated from 1917 to 1944, producing 90 million tons of gold-bearing ore, and was one of the largest mines in the world at the time. Currently, the City and Borough of Juneau controls the land, ... [read-more]
Acid Mine Drainage: Acid seep in Nevada - photo Glenn Miller Acid Mine Drainage refers to the outflow of acidic water from a mining site. In most cases, this acid comes from oxidation of iron sulfide (FeS2, also known as pyrite or "fool's ... [read-more]
Alaska Coal History: Coal was first discovered in Alaska by an English trader in 1786. The deposit was located at Coal Cove, near Port Graham Bay on the Kenai Peninsula. The Russian-American Company began mining at this site almost 70 years later in ... [read-more]
Arctic Coal: Most of Alaska's coal can be found in the northern part of the state, north of the Brooks range, near the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas. 88% of the state's identified coal resources are in these Arctic deposits. Although this coal ... [read-more]
Beatson Copper Mine: Beatson Mine Mine debris at Beatson Mine GET PHOTO SummaryThe Beatson copper mine in Prince William Sound produced over 182 million pounds of copper from 1904-1930. The mine site has an ongoing problem with acid mine drainage and is responsible ... [read-more]
Bering River Coal Field: Background Kushtaka Lake An aerial view of Kushtaka Lake, looking out over the Bering River Delta GET PHOTO The Bering River Coal Field is a bituminous coal field, located near Bering Glacier, between Icy Bay and the mouth of the ... [read-more]
Bokan Mountain Uranium and Rare Earth Deposits: SummaryThe Ross Adams mine is a historical uranium mine in southeast Alaska, currently being investigated for reclamation by its most recent operator, Newmont Mining Corporation. The site has problems with high levels of radiation from uranium and radon gas present ... [read-more]
Chandalar Gold Prospect: BackgroundThe Chandalar mining prospect is a placer mining and early-stage hard rock exploration project located about 190 miles north of Fairbanks, Alaska. The mining claims, held by Goldrich Mining Company, total around 22,840 acres and include both active placer claims ... [read-more]
Chickaloon Coal Leases: Plans for developing the Chickaloon Coal Field in the Matanuska Valley were previously abandoned in 2007, but were resurrected in 2011 when the Alaskan Mental Health Trust Authority (AMHTA) offered up 10,000 acres of coal leases. The Matanuska Valley has ... [read-more]
Chuitna Coal Mine Prospect: A journey to Chuitna ...We began with a mission to look for coal. And we found a little. But as soon as we stepped away from the scattered coal boulders in the Chuitna River, it disappeared – hidden deep beneath ... [read-more]
Coal Mine Reclamation: When mining is completed, coal mines are required to be reclaimed to standards defined by the state and federal government. Reclamation can be a major issue in mine proposal controversies (such as Chuitna), where mine opponents argue that valuable habitat ... [read-more]
Coal Mining: Mining for coal can be divided into two major categories, underground mining and strip mining. Underground mining obtains coal by digging downwards to the level of the coal and then horizontally extracting the coal through a variety of methods. In ... [read-more]
Coal Terminology: Resource & Reserve: Note: All statistics from the US have been converted from short tons to metric tons.Note: While the exact details may differ, this is basically the same measurement systems used for minerals and petroleum. How much coal is there? Behind the ... [read-more]
Council Gold Prospect: BackgroundThe Council Gold Prospect is an early-stage exploration project located on the Seward Peninsula within the Council Mining District, an area that historically produced a significant amount of placer gold. Exploration in the area is focused on located the bedrock ... [read-more]
Donlin Gold Project: SummaryThe Donlin Gold project is a proposed gold mine located in southwest Alaska. This prospect is expected to produce around 1.5 million ounces of gold per year, and has an estimated resource base of around 34 million ounces (almost $58 ... [read-more]
Fort Knox Gold Mine: SummaryThe Fort Knox Mine, a large gold mine in Interior Alaska, produces around 370,000 ounces of gold per year. This mine is a significant producer of mining waste in Alaska, but has had fewer environmental problems than many other large ... [read-more]
Gold Cyanidation: SummaryCyanide (CN), a single carbon atom triple-bonded to a nitrogen atom, has proved extremely useful in extracting gold from ore. However, with a toxic reputation dating back to a murderous application in the Holocaust, its use in mining has been ... [read-more]
Gold Mining Methods: There are strange things done in the midnight sun By the men who moil for gold... -Robert Service (1907) SummaryHistorically, the majority of gold was mined from "placer deposits", where gold has settled out of an existing or ancient waterway ... [read-more]
Goodnews Bay Platinum: SummaryPlacer mining for platinum has taken place intermittently in the area near Goodnews Bay in southwest Alaska since 1927. Today, a company called XS Platinum Limited is re-processing the tailings left behind by past operations, using earthmoving equipment and modern ... [read-more]
Greens Creek Silver Mine: SummaryGreens Creek is a large, underground silver mine located in Southeast Alaska, which also produces smaller amounts of gold, lead, and zinc. The mine is the 5th largest silver producer in the world, and the largest in the US. The ... [read-more]
Illinois Creek Gold Mine: SummaryThe Illinois Creek Mine gold and silver mine in west central Alaska operated briefly in 1997, but the mining company went bankrupt in 1998. The state of Alaska took control of the mine in 1999 and soon after initiated a ... [read-more]
Johnson River Prospect: Summary High Camp Camping in Lake Clark National Park GET PHOTO The Johnson River Prospect is a high grade copper-silver-lead-zinc-gold deposit within Lake Clark National Park, in southwestern Alaska. The Cook Inlet Regional Corporation (CIRI), an Alaska Native-owned for-profit company ... [read-more]
Jonesville Coal Mine: Background Mine-water settling pond Two ponds alternate in the role of settling sediment carried by a stream coming out of the old Evan Jones coal mine. GET PHOTO The Evans Jones Coal Mine operated between 1920 and 1968 in Sutton, ... [read-more]
Kennecott Copper Mine: SummaryThe Kennecott Copper Mine, for a time the largest copper mine in the world, operated from 1911 to 1938 in what is now Wrangell St. Elias National Park. The mine produced a total of around 4.6 million tons of ore, ... [read-more]
Kensington Gold Mine: SummaryThe Kensington Gold Mine, a mid-sized underground mining project in southeast Alaska began production during the summer of 2010. The mining prospect had been under study for many years, but fluctuations in gold prices and litigation questioning the disposal of ... [read-more]
Keystone Center Dialogue on Pebble Mine: (Author's Note: Because relatively little information about the Keystone Center dialogue is available online, parts of this article are based on our interviews with people involved, including the Keystone Center itself and an independent science panel expert) Pebble Prospect Drilling ... [read-more]
Lik Zinc Prospect: Summary Lik Prospect Aerial photo of the Lik Prospect GET PHOTO The Lik prospect, in northwest Alaska, is under exploration as a possible zinc/lead/silver mine by a small Canadian company called Zazu Metals Corporation, in collaboration with Teck Resources Limited. ... [read-more]
Livengood Gold Prospect: SummaryThe Livengood Project is located on a large gold resource located along the Trans Alaska Pipeline, about 70 miles north of Fairbanks. Talon Gold Alaska Inc. (a subsidiary of Canadian-based International Tower Hill Mines) is exploring the deposit, focusing on ... [read-more]
Mine Tailings: Basic Mining Terminology: An overview of basic mining terms and where various components of a mineral deposit end up. FULL FIGURE TerminologyMine tailings are materials left over after extraction of valuable minerals from ore. They are distinct from “waste rock” ... [read-more]
Mining Claims Near Pebble: Open tundra Vast plains of tundra with scattered trees and bushes dominate the area surrounding the Pebble Prospect. GET PHOTO BackgroundThe controversial Pebble Mine prospect has provoked a large amount of press within Alaska due to its size, profit ... [read-more]
Niblack Gold Prospect: SummaryThe Niblack Project is a copper-zinc-gold-silver deposit located on Prince of Wales Island, about 30 miles southwest of Ketchikan. The current "indicated resource" consists of 2.6 million tons of ore, composed of 1.18% copper, 2.19% zinc 2.33 g/t gold, and ... [read-more]
Nixon Fork Gold Mine: SummaryNixon Fork is a small, previously developed, gold and copper mine in Interior Alaska, which re-opened in July 2011. Operators hope to produce another 100,000-150,000 ounces of gold over the course of 3-5 years, and have also begun exploration that ... [read-more]
Non-Renewable Energy in Alaska: (NOTE: This article was written in 2010 and is no longer maintained since most of the information has been superseded by newer articles/sections of the website. Click the following links for Oil/Gas, Coal, or Coalbed Methane)Alaska is famous for oil, ... [read-more]
Peak Coal: Closely tied to the issue of coal resources and reserves is the idea of "peak coal" which is the analog to the well-studied and often debated "peak oil" concept. Peak coal is the point at which coal production reaches a ... [read-more]
Pebble Mine (Copper/Gold Prospect): Outline Summary Location Preliminary Mine Plans Environmental Concerns Mining Waste Storage Possible Cyanide Use Impact on Fisheries Footprint of the Mine Opposition How Much Metal? Employment and Economics Latest News Further Reading Summary If built, the proposed Pebble Mine would ... [read-more]
Pogo Gold Mine: Pogo Mine aerial view Aerial view of the Pogo Mine source: Northern Alaska Environmental Center (2004). Copyright held by photographer. SummaryThe Pogo Mine is a large gold mine located in Interior Alaska, which produces around 400,000 ounces of gold per year. ... [read-more]
Port MacKenzie Rail Extension: Summary The Matanuska-Susitna Borough is pursuing development of a 32-mile rail extension that would link Port MacKenzie to the existing rail system in Alaska. With state funding, the project could be completed in 2014 at a capital cost of ... [read-more]
Quantifying coal: How much is there?: 1/8th of the world's coal? An oft-quoted statistic is that Alaska has 1/8th of the world's coal, around 1/2 of the total from the US. This may well be the best available estimate of Alaska coal resource, but it relies ... [read-more]
Queen Chrome/Red Mountain Mine: Summary Mine shaft Until prices tanked in the 1950s, Chrome was mined here. GET PHOTO The Queen Chrome Mine (often called "Red Mountain Mine") operated on Red Mountain near the town of Seldovia from 1942-1944 and again from 1952-1957. The ... [read-more]
Rare Earth Elements (REEs): SummaryRare Earth Elements (REEs) are critical components of a wide variety of military and civilian technologies, including many "green" applications. However, their processing and extraction has significant environmental cost. China produces virtually all the world's REEs, and recent export restrictions ... [read-more]
Red Devil Mercury Mine: BackgroundThe Red Devil Mine extracted cinnabar that was processed into mercury on-site sporadically from 1933 to 1971. It was located in southwestern Alaska near the site of the proposed Donlin Creek Mine. It produced a total of 2.7 million pounds ... [read-more]
Red Dog Mine: Outline Summary History and Geology Mining Techniques and Waste Disposal Aqqaluk Project Employment and Revenue Sharing Environmental Concerns Latest News Summary The Red Dog Mine is a zinc and lead mine in northern Alaska, located about 80 miles north of ... [read-more]
Rock Creek Gold Mine: SummaryThe Rock Creek Gold mine operated near Nome in Western Alaska for only two months in 2008 before shutting down due to a combination of mechanical, environmental, and financing issues. Your browser does not support iframes. Mine InformationThe Rock Creek ... [read-more]
Salt Chuck Mine: SummaryThe Salt Chuck Mine operated as copper-palladium-gold-silver mine from around 1916 to 1941. Located on Prince of Wales Island in southeast Alaska, the site has a significant problem with acid mine drainage and is on the EPA National Superfund priority ... [read-more]
Tangle Lakes/MAN Prospect: Summary Tangle Lakes Area A river in the Tangle Lakes Area source: Northern Alaska Environmental Center (2007). Copyright held by photographer. The MAN project (also known as the Tangle Lakes project) is a large collection of nickel-copper-platinum mining leases spread over ... [read-more]
The True Cost of Coal: To the electricity customer, coal is relatively cheap. But missing from the sticker price are coal's major impacts on ecosystems, human health, and our economy. People are sickened by pollution from coal fired power plants, shortening their lives and burdening ... [read-more]
Types and Composition of Coal: Your browser does not support iframes. While "coal" is often described as a single commodity, in fact coal varies widely in important physical characteristics such as energy content (usually measured in British Thermal Units, BTU ), carbon percentage, moisture content, ... [read-more]
Underground Coal Gasification (UCG): Underground Coal Gasification (UCG) involves igniting coal in the ground, then collecting and using the gases that result from its partial combustion. Although the idea dates back over a century, very few UCG plants have ever been built. Underground gasification ... [read-more]
Upper Kobuk Mineral Project (formerly "Ambler Prospect"): SummaryThe Upper Kobuk Mineral Project seeks to develop a large and remote copper/zinc/gold/silver deposits in the northwestern Arctic. The project is focused on two areas, the Bornite deposit and the Arctic deposit. The Arctic metal sulfide deposit includes an estimated ... [read-more]
Uses of Coal: For much of modern human history, the primary use of coal was combustion in the home or in factories to produce heat. The majority of coal is still burned for electricity production, but usually in centralized power plants. Much of ... [read-more]
Usibelli Coal Mines: In 1943, Usibelli Coal Mine Inc. was founded by Emil Usibelli in order to provide coal to the precursor of Fort Wainwright. The mines that Usibelli operates take advantage of abundant subbituminous coal near the surface in the Healy area, ... [read-more]
Waste Storage 'In Perpetuity': Perpetual waste storage Toxic waste is an inevitable byproduct of many industries, from mines to power plants, nuclear reactors to municipal landfills. Therefore, we construct facilities to contain or treat these toxic byproducts. In many cases the mandate of these ... [read-more]
Water Management at Pebble Mine: (Author's Note: Much of the information about hydrology and water quality at the Pebble Mine site is based on publicly available data, released by PLP. In deference to their "do not cite or quote" policy, we have simply listed the ... [read-more]
Whistler Gold/Silver/Copper Prospect: SummaryThe Whistler gold/silver/copper prospect is located on the Skwentna River, about 100 miles northwest of Anchorage. The current official resource estimate (a sum of the indicated plus inferred resource) is around 3 million ounces of gold, 13 million ounces of ... [read-more]
Wishbone Hill Coal Mine: BackgroundThe Wishbone Hill Mine is a proposed mine site in the Matanuska Valley approximately 5 miles west of downtown Sutton, AK. The site is on the border of the Sutton/Alpine and Buffalo/Soapstone Community Council boundaries and is less than a ... [read-more]
Yakutat Forelands Prospects: (In early 2011 these claims were all forfeited and the land is once again owned by the BLM. No further exploration is taking place at either of these prospects)SummarySoutheast of Yakutat, AK, two adjacent blocks of mining claims were under ... [read-more]
Alaska Metals Mining: Background on Mining Acid Mine Drainage Gold Cyanidation Gold Mining Methods Mine Tailings Mining Taxes and Revenue in AK Perpetual Waste Storage Powering Large Mines in AK Rare Earth Elements (REEs) Active Mines in Alaska Fort Knox Gold Mine Greens ... [read-more]
Journeys tagged Mining
Where the heck is Donlin?: (This journey was undertaken by Bjorn Olson and Kim McNett, with the support of Ground Truth Trekking in Winter and Spring 2011. See the movie page for the status of the documentary)StatusCompleted in June 2011, with a documentary still to ... [read-more]
Photos tagged Mining
