Letters to the editor: Barkerville article ‘disturbing’

We have been very long-time subscribers of your newspaper as a source of factually correct information in the mining industry. We want to draw your attention to some serious errors found in your article, “Barkerville in the doghouse with BCSC” (T.N.M., Aug. 27–Sept. 2/12), in regard to the B.C. Securities Commission’s cease-trade order for Barkerville Gold Mines. The trade halt was prompted on the premise that the filed technical report was “not prepared in the required form.”

The BCSC did not release details as to how the report, prepared by geologist Peter T. George, was not compliant, but we understand that the company and George are working to address all of the BCSC’s concerns.

We strongly feel that your comments and excerpts of your phone interview with Garth Kirkham, chairman of the Best Practices Committee of the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (CIM) are inflammatory, factually incorrect and damaging in nature.

We find your article, portraying Kirkham as a reviewer of the submitted technical report on the Cow Mountain deposits in central B.C., disturbing for a number of reasons.

Kirkham did not undertake the minimum professional courtesy of discussing the report’s findings with the author Peter T. George, a well-respected “qualified person” with many years of experience. A simple phone call would undoubtedly clarify a number of Kirkham’s concerns and reveal the methodology used in the reserve report. As chairman of the CIM’s best practices committee, the first practice should be open communication.

Professional discussion would disclose what data was entered into the Amine software George used to calculate the reserves. The facts were easily obtainable from George, and Kirkham could make a sensible decision having heard all the facts.

It is reasonable that a respectable newspaper like The Northern Miner would have editing and deliberation procedures in place before printing such damaging information.

We urge you to clarify some of the statements made in your article. It is true that Barkerville stated in its press release on June 28, 2012, that “this resource estimate on 10% of the company’s prospective gold belt puts the Cariboo gold project into the world-class category…”

We agree that it’s a bold statement, but it doesn’t mean the estimated resource should be considered untrue because of its size.

Robert Rose, managing director

D&D Securities Inc.

Toronto, ON