New plays featured at Cordilleran Roundup

Just under 2,000 delegates attended the 8th annual Cordilleran Geology and Exploration Roundup held recently in Vancouver, B.C., to hear news of the latest discoveries and exchange informationon financing, technology and government policies. The roundup is the premier event of the year for British Columbia’s mining community, and one of the highlights this year was an international session featuring mineral projects in Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama and Venezuela.

A number of promising discoveries in the Canadian Cordillera were also highlighted, including the Kemess copper-gold project in the Toodoggone, the Brewery Creek gold project in the Yukon, the Expo copper project on Vancouver Island, and the SIB gold discovery near Eskay Creek. Awards for prospecting and mine development were also presented to two worthy recipients. John Stollery won the Spud Huestis Award, presented annually to an individual who has made a significant contribution to the industry through the original application of prospecting techniques or other geoscience technology.

Stollery, president of both Fairfield Minerals and Cordilleran Engineering, was recognized for his role in prospecting programs carried out by Cordilleran Engineering. These led to the discovery of the Robb Lake, Goz Creek, and Gayna River lead-zinc projects in British Columbia, the Yukon and the Northwest Territories, respectively; the Logjam Creek tungsten-molybdenum and Logamzinc-silve discoverie i th Yukon th Midwa zinc-silver-lead-barite deposit in British Columbia; and the more recent Elk gold-silver deposit in southern British Columbia.

Albert (Bert) Reeve, president of Laramide Resources, was awarded the Edgar A. Scholz Medal for his contribution to mine development. He formed Cordilleran Engineering with John Stollery and participated in exploration programs which located new zinc deposits at Robb Lake and Goz Creek.

But he was also honored for his exploration work on a gold prospect at Blackdome Mountain near Clinton, B.C. As president of Blackdome Mining, which he founded in 1978, Reeve was in full charge of exploration, development and feasibility studies until 1986. The mine began production in May of that year, and produced 230,000 oz. gold before closing early this year after a successful operating life.

The Cordilleran Roundup is jointly sponsored by the British Columbia & Yukon Chamber of Mines, the provincial mines ministry, the Geological Survey of Canada and the federal department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development.

Delegates to the convention were told that although overall Canadian exploration expenditures declined significantly last year, preliminary estimates show that 1990 expenditures in British Columbia were only marginally less than the $150 million spent in 1989.

The high levels of exploration investment were directly related to confirmation of two significant mineral discoveries at Eskay Creek and Mt. Milligan, and it is expected that the regions surrounding these discoveries will remain relatively active in 1991.

The long-term survival of the mineral industry was also a topic of discussion in view of native land claims and new initiatives to add to the provincial park system and establish large forest wilderness areas.

William Wolfe, president of the Chamber of Mines, told delegates that the industry is confronted in 1991 with external pressures from several directions, all with the uniform objective confronted in 1991 with external pressures from severa directions al wit th unifor objectiv o i som wa diminishin th are o lan availabl fo minera tenure in the province. “I th nex fe year i wil b th tas o th chambe o Mine t advanc th technica an economi argument int th lan us debat s tha w ca b sur tha alienatio o larg tract o lan wil no b allowe t impai minera exploratio to the point where a sustainable mining industry is no longer possible in British Columbia,” he said.

In order to maximize the impact of its important message to elected officials, the chamber has joined forces with the Mining Association of British Columbia.

A new Forest Wilderness and Parks committee has also been formed, headed by Gerald Carlson, to conduct a public information campaign and present a unified position to government so that the industry can participate in decision-making prior to alienation of any further lands in the province.