The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
Sorted by date Results 301 - 323 of 323
The Red Dog Mine, 17 years after startup, is unquestionably the economic and human resources success story of the Northwest Arctic Borough. Zinc and lead prices are strong, and production is up at the mine, which is operated by Teck Cominco Alaska on lands owned by the Alaska Native regional corporation, NANA Regional Corp. But the world's largest producer of zinc concentrate continues to be plagued by issues surrounding its discharge of wastewater. Treated water from the mine is released into tributaries of the Wulik River,...
A new group of Alaskans from across the state have joined forces to fight two proposed ballot initiatives that threaten the mining industry and its $10 billion-plus impact on Alaska's economy. Citing concerns about the negative effects the measures could have on Alaska, "Alaskans Against the Mining Shutdown" said in a statement Jan. 25 that it will direct a statewide campaign to defeat the two ballot initiatives which would have the effect of shutting down existing mines and prohibiting future mines in Alaska, the coalition...
The Alaska mining industry issued a report Jan. 21 that outlines in graphic detail the considerable and growing impact that mining activities are having on the state. Mining companies spent an estimated $1.25 billion in Alaska in 2007 on everything from drilling rigs to rents and royalties. "Mining companies strengthen Alaska communities by employing Alaska residents from more than 100 Alaska communities and purchasing supplies and services from hundreds of Alaska companies," the report said. A banner year for the industry,...
The Clean Water Initiatives that could come before Alaska voters in the general election next fall "are dangerous and deceptive proposals that Alaska cannot afford," according to a key executive at NANA Development Corp. Rosie Barr, resources manager for the operating arm of NANA Inc., the Alaska Native regional corporation for Northwest Alaska, spoke out against the initiatives and outlined the economic benefits of the Red Dog zinc-lead mine to Alaska at an industry...
Teck Cominco Alaska Inc. released the final report Nov. 29 of a six-year study that concludes it is safe to consume subsistence foods in all areas near the Red Dog Mine in northwestern Alaska without restrictions. The final report of the "DeLong Mountain Regional Transportation System Fugitive Dust Risk Assessment" incorporated formal comments and input from a wide range of government agencies and stakeholders, including local village residents," said Wayne Hall, Red Dog Mine's Senior Environmental Coordinator. Ore...
For those of you who could not attend the Alaska Miners Association convention in Anchorage in early November, you missed what I understand was a record attendance and presentations on some of the most exciting mining developments in the last decade. In addition, I noticed a lot more business being conducted around the conference hotel than is normally the case. Geologists and engineers from companies large and small could be seen hunkered down over reports and maps with...
A quest by Teck Cominco Alaska Inc. to expand operations at the Red Dog Mine in northwestern Alaska is moving forward as regulators prepare to conduct a series of public scoping meetings Oct. 2-5 in affected communities. Red Dog, the world's largest producer of zinc concentrate, began production in 1989. It is located 82 miles north of Kotzebue on land owned by NANA Regional Corp., the Alaska Native regional corporation for northwest Alaska. Current mining of Red Dog's main deposit is scheduled to wind down between 2010 and...
Vancouver-based Teck Cominco has almost made enough money at Red Dog mine to start paying Alaska Native corporation NANA a 25 percent net proceeds of production royalty, the company announced in its second-quarter report July 30. Teck Cominco currently pays NANA an annual advance royalty equal to 4.5 percent of Red Dog's net smelter return. At a certain point specified in the royalty agreement, NANA must pay the 25 percent royalty, which increases in 5 percent increments every fifth year to a maximum of 50 percent. Advance...
In a week when lead and zinc hit record-breaking high prices, it was particularly appropriate for Vancouver-based Teck Cominco's president and CEO, Don Lindsay, to be visiting Alaska for the seventh time. The state is home to the world's largest lead-zinc mine, Red Dog, and the company has further demonstrated its commitment to Alaska with the recent opening of Pogo gold mine, a partnership with Japan's Sumitomo Metal Mining. The Alaska Miners Association presented Teck Cominco with its new mine award this year. Walter Sampso...
A federal court judge has ruled that Teck Cominco Ltd., owner and operator of the Red Dog Mine in Northwest Alaska, violated the federal Clean Water Act by discharging treated wastewater into a nearby stream. U.S. District Court Judge John Sedwick in Anchorage found that Red Dog exceeded limits set by the federal law in 618 claims in a lawsuit filed by a half-dozen residents of the nearby Arctic village of Kivalina. However, Sedwick denied the lawsuit's 1,300-plus other pollution claims in his July 28 ruling. The six...
NovaGold Resources is heading towards the Center of the Universe this year. No, the Vancouver-based junior won't be mining in outer space; it turns out that the Center of the Universe is in Alaska - which will come as no surprise to some residents of the 49th state. Astronomers may disagree about the accuracy of the name, but geologists believe that the Center of the Universe deposit could contain healthy reserves of copper, lead and zinc. NovaGold plans a 3,000-meter drill campaign at the deposit this year, as part of its...
It is business as usual at Red Dog, the world's largest producer of zinc concentrates. But a new general manager is in charge of guiding operations at the huge production facility 90 miles north of Kotzebue. John Knapp, 49, took on the top job at Red Dog earlier in December, when his boss, Robert G. Scott, was appointed vice president of base metal mining at Teck Cominco Ltd., the mine's owner. Knapp came to work as mill manager at Red Dog in January after 25 years at other Teck Cominco lead/zinc operations, most recently...
Red Dog mine in Northwest Alaska's Arctic is just over half-way to its target of 100 percent NANA Corp. shareholder hire, and operator Teck Cominco is making every effort to increase that proportion. The world's largest zinc mine is on NANA land and working with the local community is an essential part of the business, General Manager Rob Scott told the Alaska Miners Association convention in Anchorage Nov. 4. In total Teck Cominco has hired more than 1,000 NANA shareholders at Red Dog since production began in 1989, which do...
Other mining projects may be jumping on the bandwagon, but Teck Cominco still leads the race to find local gas reserves to feed the voracious appetite of a large-mine power plant in Alaska. Seven years after discovering gas deposits in shale near the Red Dog lead/zinc mine, the owner of the huge Northwest Alaska mine is ready to drill a two-well exploration program in hopes of replacing costly diesel fuel it must barge in every year. Though oil companies have developed gas reserves to power production facilities on the North...
Alaska Native corporations have considerable experience partnering with mining companies and have seen economic benefits for their shareholders from the mining industry. They are also aware of people's concern about the effect of mining on the subsistence lifestyle, as became clear in a panel discussion on "Mining and the Native Perspective" at the Newhalen conference in April. Greg Beischer of Bristol Environmental and Engineering Services Corp. a subsidiary of Bristol Bay Native Corp., introduced the panel. Beischer, an...
Alaska's Red Dog zinc mine has received environmental certification under ISO 14001, becoming one of a handful of mines in North America to achieve this status. Malcolm Ting of the international inspection and certification agency SGS presented a banner to Teck Cominco and NANA Corp. representatives at an Alaska Support Industry Alliance event in Anchorage Dec. 10. When the banner flies at Red Dog, in the Arctic 90 miles north of Kotzebue, it will be the farthest north symbol of a certified mine. "It doesn't contain specific...
The first of two-seasons of construction is under way on the Nome Glacier Creek Road realignment in western Alaska. This is just one of a number of mining road and port projects the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities has carried into Phase II, Mike McKinnon, the project's manager, told the Alaska Miners Association annual conference in Anchorage Nov. 4. For five years, he said, the department has "been looking at the issue of industrial development roads with the idea that there are situations where...
It's still a few years off, but if NovaGold Resources Inc. turns the Ambler prospect into an operating mine, it could open up a mineral belt with a total of $12 billion in reserves - at 1982 prices. That $12 billion figure comes from a 1982 state report listing 10 major volcano-derived deposits in northwestern Alaska, from the operating Red Dog Mine all the way to the border of Gates of the Arctic National Park. Perhaps the biggest and richest concentration is the Arctic deposit 150 miles east of Kotzebue near the villages...
The Red Dog zinc and lead mine in remote northwest Alaska appears to be the victim of another misleading environmental report - this time, one causing some residents in neighboring villages alarm about the quality of berries and greens gathered as food sources. The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services, Division of Public Health, Section of Epidemiology, recently issued a report reassuring local residents in northwest Alaska about the safety of naturally growing subsistence food sources in the region. State...
Alaska's largest mine and the world's largest producer of zinc counters its national top ranking by the Environmental Protection Agency for toxic releases, saying that the agency's decision to count naturally occurring metals contained in unmilled rock is misleading. According to the latest Toxic Release Inventory report issued by EPA, Red Dog received the dubious honor of topping the nationwide list, due to the amount of metals considered toxic which naturally occur in rock at the remote mine site. For the 2002 report to...
NovaGold Resources plans to work on its other large metals deposit this summer, the Ambler property located in the remote part of northwestern Alaska, filing a permit with the state to drill up to 21 core holes. The company announced a $1.5 million budget for the property earlier this year, shortly after signing an agreement with Kennecott to acquire a 51 percent interest in the gold, silver, copper and base metals deposit. Helicopter-supported exploration work will take place between June 15 and Sept. 30, according to the...
An increase in sales coupled with significantly higher zinc and lead prices helped the Red Dog Mine in northwest Alaska post a $50 million profit in 2003, turning round from a $28 million loss posted the prior year. Red Dog's operator, Teck Cominco Ltd., released its fourth quarter and year-end reports for 2003 on Feb. 4, announcing net earnings of $149 million for the mining company. Higher earnings are due mainly to rising zinc, copper and gold prices, which rose significantly during the fourth quarter, the company said....
The Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that mining is one of the nation's safest occupations with a lower rate of illness and injury per 100 employees, 4.7, than manufacturing, 9, and construction, 8.3, and grocery stores, 8, hotels, 6.9, and retail sales, 5.9 As is usually the case, the Alaska summer season reached its peak in activity in August. As is always the case, some properties show promise of turning into Alaska's next operating mine while others have their names quietly scribed on the scroll of the dead. Several...
