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Miners Clean Washington Rivers and Streams
May 2007 by Richard Holcomb
The Washington Department of Health has issued several warnings about mercury contamination in fish and shellfish. The small-scale mining community is the only group that is actively removing mercury and lead from the waterways of the State of Washington using the only economically feasible method available—with suction dredges and other small-scale mining equipment.Green Valley Gold District, Payson, Arizona
Most gold-bearing quartz veins found in the district were fracture fillings in faults enclosed by crushed quartz zones along their margins. Since the host rocks were often extensively weathered, portions of the veins stood out as positive, resistant outcrops. The gold-bearing veins ranged from a few inches wide to the vein at the Gowan mine that was as much as 12 feet wide. Basic Geology for the Independent Miner—Part II Recognizing and Understanding Rock Formations (Petrology)
Rocks are an aggregate formed from the accumulation of minerals. Minerals form under various conditions, and when the minerals come together in mass, they form rocks.
Mining Expedition at Eagle Rock—Part II
We spent more time that first day moving rocks than we did sending material over the sluices. Even so, our cleanup was quite respectable for having only moved down to a depth of a couple feet.
Mining Deaths Drop to New Low in 2001
Fatal injuries at mines in the United States declined last year to a historic new low, according to preliminary data released January 3, 2002, by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA).
Sunshine Mine Video Brings Back Painful Memories
When a federal employee decided to make a safety video for miners, she didn’t expect to reopen 30-year-old wounds from one of the nation’s worst mining disasters. But a roomful of tough men had watery eyes as they watched the film “You Are My Sunshine,” which recounted the Sunshine Mine disaster of 1972 that claimed 91 lives.
Diary of a Diamond Prospector
I couldn’t wait to get started. With no field budget, an assay budget of $100/year, a 1975-Ford Bronco that was a road hazard, a gas card, a topo map and full support of the director, I headed to the State Line district near Tie Siding along US Highway 287 to begin mapping kimberlite.
Gemstones
by Ronald F. BalazikExcerpted from USGS Mineral Industry Survey's 1998 Annual Review
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The Bawl Mill
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