Exploratory Mining near MSH approved

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sgyoung
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Exploratory Mining near MSH approved

Post by sgyoung » February 9th, 2018, 9:35 am

Sorry if this is posted elsewhere, but my searching didn't turn up an immediately related thread. Anyway, this sucks:

http://www.columbian.com/news/2018/feb/ ... st-helens/

(I updated the title to better reflect the situation - didn't intend to sensationalize).

bushwhacker
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Re: Exploratory Mining near MSH approved

Post by bushwhacker » February 9th, 2018, 5:23 pm

Actually the Columbian article is misleading too. They are just drilling holes at this point. Not mining. I see in the article where they are looking for 'copper, gold and molybdenum'. I didn't even know what molybdenum was but I guess it's used in certain steel making processes and can be extracted during copper mining. I would be really nervous if they actually found copper that could be mined. I have seen the gigantic open pit copper mine in Wyoming and it is ugly.

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bobcat
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Re: Exploratory Mining near MSH approved

Post by bobcat » February 9th, 2018, 8:57 pm

Well, they're doing it because there is copper there. Between the Lewis River and the Green River, there were about 500 prospectors working in the 1890s, with several thousand feet of adits. Spirit Lake was even used to barge copper ore closer to the railroad. It was mostly low grade stuff, and extraction methods were so inefficient they left a lot behind. There was a trading post at Langes Crest, just below the Spillover. Perhaps they think they can do it better with 21st century technology. They're staying outside of the NVM.

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K.Wagner
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Re: Exploratory Mining near MSH approved

Post by K.Wagner » March 8th, 2018, 12:45 pm

I have really mixed feelings about the possibility of this area going into "full extraction mode". I know that the current permit is just for drilling some sample holes (which they have already done a few years back), but if this round of testing comes back positive, then of course the next approval step will be for actual mining.

We seem to have an insatiable appetite for these minerals. So, do we just say NIMBY and insist that the poor folks in some other country destroy their landscape and contaminate their men & boys, so that we can keep ours pristine? As bobcat pointed out, around 1900, this area was a mass of mining claims. All you have to do is look at almost any map, and you will still see mine names. No one made any money because the mineral concentrations are so low, but it was sure hyped at the time. I am pretty sure that the environmental controls were all but nonexistent back then, and the river & surrounds have mostly recovered from that assault.

You can believe that if (in the future) the Canadian company does get approval for extraction, Trump will be out of office, and the environmental restrictions are going to extremely tight.

But on the other hand, do I WANT to see that area torn apart? Of course not, it is in my backyard.
Kelly
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Water
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Re: Exploratory Mining near MSH approved

Post by Water » March 12th, 2018, 11:37 pm

IMO while it sounds incredibly selfish, doing any mining, logging, or other extractive industry which is going to cause environmental degradation or negative impact of some sort is not going to spare or prevent it from happening elsewhere in the world by any means. Considering I hear that we have some of the more stringent environmental regs around the world (surpassed perhaps only by European countries), and knowing (and experiencing) the history of industrial malfeasance in just my short lifetime, well after the creation of Earth Day and the EPA, I'm not especially assured and assuaged that the bar is set so high that I am willing to tolerate extraction activities, or additional extraction, in areas that are otherwise bereft of them already. I will sleep no better at night knowing the copper in my new camera is coming from the Green River valley AND an open pit mine in Borneo.. therefor I do not see a reason to indulge the one. If this is at the peak of one's concern, not owning materials that utilize whatever mineral is the only course of action one can morally stand on.

My opinion, and yes I know I owe everyone change for the penny for my thoughts..
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retired jerry
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Re: Exploratory Mining near MSH approved

Post by retired jerry » March 13th, 2018, 5:27 am

There used to be a lot of mining relics east of Spirit Lake. I remember picking things up and bringing home, like old bottles. Huge steam (?) engines they never bothered to remove. Still there but buried?

I wonder if they'd have an open pit mine?

I wish regulations would be more consistent and not vary wildly every 4 or 8 years. I'd feel better if the tightest environmental regulations were used. I do like using devices, driving car, living in house...

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K.Wagner
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Re: Exploratory Mining near MSH approved

Post by K.Wagner » March 13th, 2018, 8:53 am

Agreeing with everything said.

I find it interesting that we all seem to be really intrigued by mining relics (as mentioned by retired jerry), but abhor the thought of a new, much cleaner project starting. Granted, anything today will likely be on a scale that we might not even be able to fathom now.

In thinking about why the drilling permit was even issued, it is my guess that the gamble was that the results are going to come back so low, that the whole question will be settled by the mining company's own profit / loss analysis.
Kelly
There is no shortcut to anyplace worth going to.

PM me about the soon to be released:
Skamania 231
"How to really get off the beaten path in Skamania County"

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