…2017 was just the first year with a small increase after a huge drop off in exploration activity. It may take many years of future increases to get back to where the activity was in 2012, as projected increases in exploration spending are seen to be slow and steady.

There is no question the economy will not always be as good as it is now. There is also no doubt that someday the lack of exploration and the ore in existing mines running out will come home to roost.

The lake is at the southern tip of the San Andreas Fault, which has shifting tectonic plates that bring molten material closer to Earth’s surface. The only other part of the US known to have more geothermal brine available is on the fault’s other end in Northern California.

The need to bring mining back to North America is more urgent than ever.

Silver recovery from low-level solutions is frequently done in a cell that has a cathode with 2 to 5 or more times the surface area as the anode.