EASTERN OREGON
MINING ASSOCIATION
MAY 2022
Volume 392
MAY 6th, 2022 MEETING AT ELK CREEK ENTERPRISES
We will have a meeting MAY 6th, 2022 at the Elk Creek Enterprises saw shop located at 890 Elm Street in Baker City. The Board Meeting will begin at 6:00 PM with the general meeting following at 6:30 PM. As usual we will give away a 1 oz. silver medallion at the end of the meeting.
EOMA MEMBERSHIP DUES WERE DUE JANUARY 1ST
If you can’t pay in person, please send your $35 dues ($40 for a family) to the EOMA, PO Box 932, Baker City OR 97814. You should also be able to pay with a credit card or pay pal on our website. www.h2oaccess.com
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE-Ken Alexander
I grew up believing important information had to be in writing. In fact, I was told by a FS ranger “if it isn’t in writing, it didn’t happen”. Thus, I requested the FS provide EOMA a hard copy of the Powder Watershed Mining Plans EIS which is due out in April. In the past, EOMA, along with any miners who had operations analyzed in the EIS, were provided a paper copy. However, this time I was told that I had to have requested a paper copy when the EIS was first published two years ago, which I was pretty sure we had done. I was also told the EIS would be delayed if they had to make printed copies.
Naturally, I said that EOMA did not want anything to further delay sending the document out for public comment. The miners proposed in their Plans of Operation how they would develop their valuable mineral deposits over 10 years ago. . They have waited way too long already. A few of the miners have died, but their partners and heirs would still like the chance to develop their private mineral properties. The miners need to see if the EIS correctly depicted and analyzed each POO. EOMA will work with the miners who would like a hard copy of the document.
POWDER RIVER WATERSHED MINING PLANS EIS-Jan Alexander
Twenty Two Mining Plans of Operation were analyzed in the EIS. Of these, many were very small-scale test proposals, with project areas of one acre for exploration over the next ten-year period.
Writing an EIS is a time-consuming expensive process for the Forest Service. Ranger Cikanek has stated that the Forest Service will no longer be lumping a lot of operations into an EIS, but instead will do individual analysis of each submitted Plan.
BLM has a provision in their regulations for a bonded Notice where disturbance is less than 5 acres and testing will result in processing “less than 1,000 tons of presumed ore”. There have been many proposals to change the Forest Service mining regulations to match the BLM mining regulations, but to date nothing in the regulations has changed. However, the Forest Service has seen that a one-acre test proposal should not be included in an EIS where the miners were forced to wait 10 years or more before being approved to do their testing.
CATEGORICAL EXCLUSIONS-Jan Alexander
There is a Categorical Exclusion which requires that the Forest Service maintain a case file on the proposed project and that a Decision Memo be issued before approving the Plan. This exclusion from writing an EA or EIS states the following:
“Short-term (1 year or less) mineral, energy, or geophysical investigations and their incidental support activities that may require cross-country travel by vehicles and equipment, construction of less than 1 mile of low standard road, or use and minor repair of existing roads. Examples include, but are not limited to: (vii) Approving a plan for exploration which authorizes repair of an existing road and the construction of 1⁄3 mile of temporary road; clearing vegetation from an acre of land for trenches, drill pads, or support facilities.
Using Categorical Exclusions to approve testing operations would allow mine operators to make important decisions concerning the deposit and if it contains sufficient values to actually mine. Test Operations approved under Categorical Exclusions would require a bond and would require reclamation. Plans could be approved in a timely manner saving both the Government and the miners a lot of time and money.
GOLDMAN SACHS SEES GOLD PRICES HITTING $2,500/oz BY END OF YEAR
Earlier in January, Goldman Sachs had raised their 12-month gold price forecast to $2150 an ounce on the view that an impending US growth slowdown would lead to increased concerns of a US recession. Gold prices have surged nearly 18 per cent thus far in calendar year 2022 (CY22) to around $2,050 per ounce in the backdrop of the ongoing Russia – Ukraine conflict and there is more headroom over the next few months, believe analysts at Goldman Sachs, who expect the prices to rise another 25 per cent to $2,500 an ounce by the year-end.
AN OIL LEASING FIG LEAF- Andy Home, a columnist for Reuters
The Biden Interior Department has done the bare minimum to comply with a court order to allow lease sales on federal land. In case you missed the Good Friday news dump, the Biden Administration plans to restart oil and gas leasing on federal lands this week. Or so its press release claims.
The Administration, as usual, is restricting oil and gas development while pretending that’s not what it’s doing.
OPINION: ON OIL AND GAS LEASING- POTOMAC WATCH
During his first week in office, President Biden ordered the Interior Department to halt oil and gas lease sales on federal lands. Federal judge Terry Doughty last June ruled the ban violated the Mineral Leasing Act, which requires the government to hold quarterly lease sales “for each State where eligible lands are available.” The judge ordered Interior to resume leasing.
Interior appealed while dragging its feet. Finally in November it held an offshore sale in the Gulf of Mexico. But months later another judge vacated the leases, quibbling that Interior didn’t calculate the potential greenhouse-gas emissions from oil produced from the leases that is consumed abroad. Interior didn’t appeal that ruling.
Energy companies threatened to seek another judicial order to compel Interior to hold an onshore lease sale this spring. Interior’s Friday announcement is an attempt to head off that effort. It says it will hold a sale for 173 parcels on roughly 144,000 acres of land. This is doing the least possible to comply with Judge Doughty’s ruling last summer.
This is two-thirds less land than the average during the Trump Presidency. Interior says it is “prioritizing the American people’s broad interests in public lands,” but the sale amounts to a mere 0.00589% of federal land. Americans have a significant interest in more domestic energy production. They don’t want to keep paying more than $4 a gallon for gasoline.
Interior also plans to increase the federal royalty rate for the first time to 18.75% from 12.5%, which it says will “ensure fair return for the American taxpayer and on par with rates charged by states and private landowners.” But the federal rate has long been lower in order to compensate for the more onerous federal permitting process.
The Administration took 182 days to issue a drilling permit last year compared with a few days for the state of Texas. Time carries a monetary value, and the leasing suspension has increased the cost of new investment. It’s hard to avoid the conclusion that Mr. Biden doesn’t want to increase U.S. oil and gas production. He wants to duck political responsibility for high energy prices.
BIDEN ADMINISTRATION PUSHES TO CHANGE THE MINING LAW- Ron Rimelman
2022 AEMA President
As all of us have seen, there have been many calls to revise the 1872 Mining Law to require hardrock mines to pay royalties and potentially other fees. At the same time, there have been a range of comments made that existing regulations are inadequate to protect the environment from mining operations, and even suggestions that mines in the U.S. are governed by much fewer regulatory requirements than other countries. This is nothing new and we have encountered and responded to these issues for decades. However, in the past year, there has been an increased focus on them in Congress and within the Biden administration. In 2021, we worked closely with our members, NMA, and many others to pro-actively tell our story of how radical changes to the 1872 Mining Law could severely damage the metal mining industry in the U.S., especially at a time when the importance of safe and reliable supplies of critical and strategic materials has never been higher.
Now, the Biden administration has taken a major next step in the process, working in conjunction with certain interested parties in Congress. In February 2022, the Department of Interior (DOI) announced formation of an interagency working group (IWG) to gather “information and develop recommendations for improving Federal hardrock mining regulations, laws, and permitting processes." Subsequently, on March 31st, DOI published a Federal Register Notice asking for public input on 10 questions on issues ranging from how to change the 1872 Mining Law and Federal mineral leasing system to Good Samaritan requirements to improvements in mine permitting processes to best practices for mining operations and closure.
It is easy to question the motivations for these efforts, e.g., the Notice specifically cites the NGOs' petition to DOI to revise the BLM’s 3809 regulations. The Notice did, however, at least suggest that they want constructive input and are looking for opportunities to incentivize “responsible” mineral production in the U.S., including ways to streamline permitting and promote Good Samaritan efforts. As a group, we at AEMA are going to take them up on their request and will be looking to provide substantive information into the record by the comment deadline at the end of July. This will be a huge effort led by AEMA staff, but we will also need significant help from our members who bring broad expertise in each request area. We already held a kick-off meeting that had a great attendance, and will be working over the next few weeks to outline the materials and identify contributors. In this, we will be closely coordinating with AEMA members, NMA, state mining associations, and state governments. DOI also announced that they will be holding roundtables and there should be other opportunities for dialogue with the hardrock mining industry. Further, we are pro-actively making this a focus of our outreach to Congress and the administration – it is great that we now have the opportunity for in-person visits. As said, we already have seen much support for our efforts but welcome additional help. Please let Mark and his team know if and how you want to be involved.
THE DIAMOND WORLD IS SCRAMBLING TO KEEP BUYING RUSSIAN GEMS-Bloomberg News, editing by Jim Harvey
US sanctions on Russia’s giant diamond miners are causing chaos through the industry, leaving traders and manufacturers hunting for workarounds to keep tapping one of the world’s main sources of precious gems. Buyers across the big trading centers in Antwerp and Dubai and manufacturing hubs in India have spent the past two weeks consulting lawyers to determine what the US sanctions on Alrosa PJSC mean and how they can continue to buy, according to people familiar with the matter. In the meanwhile, diamonds have stopped flowing from Russian mines to Surat — the world’s diamond-cutting epicenter — because Indian banks are unable or unwilling to process payments.
A delegation from Alrosa visited India earlier this week and held meetings with customers and trade groups to discuss how to facilitate sales, people familiar with the matter said. The disruption is already being felt in diamond prices, as the cost of the smaller stones that Alrosa specializes in has started to rise in the past week. Alrosa is effectively state controlled: the federal government owns 33% and another 25% is held by local authorities. Losing its supply over a longer period would be seismic for the diamond world — the company accounts for about a third of global supply of rough stones, about the same level as De Beers, which had a monopoly until the start of this century.
Alrosa was scheduled to hold its next sale this coming week — one of the 10 it holds each year — but it’s unlikely it’ll be able to sell any stones because banks are unable to process payments, according to the people. Yet as western governments levy sanctions on Russia and companies pull away from the country, many in India’s diamond industry still want to keep buying, according to people familiar with the matter. And while big-name US jewelers Tiffany & Co. and Signet Jewelers Ltd. have said they will stop buying new diamonds mined in Russia, retailers in places like China, India and the Middle East have not followed suit.
Alrosa’s meetings in India this week included discussions on how to allow Indian manufacturers and traders to pay for Alrosa’s diamonds, the people said. While the discussions included paying in rubles or rupees, no firm arrangements were made. Any deal will need the support of the Indian government, which was not involved in the discussions. For Alrosa, one option could be to sell its gems to the Russian government, as it did during the 2008 financial crisis.
The disruptions around Russian diamonds are being felt through the global industry, which was already facing a shortage of rough stones even before the war in Ukraine. Rough diamond prices have surged in the past year as US consumers, by far the most important market, bought a record amount of jewelry. That created a boom for the companies that trade, cut and manufacture diamonds.
GOLD HELPS MAKE GREENER FUEL CELLS- formulatehealth ENERGY DIGEST
Curcumin — the substance in turmeric — and gold nanoparticles have been combined to create an electrode that requires 100 times less energy than hydrogen to efficiently convert ethanol into electricity. According to researchers at the Clemson Nanomaterials Institute and the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning, of all the catalysts for alcohol oxidation in alkaline medium that exist, the one they prepared is the best so far. Thus, their finding paves the way for replacing hydrogen as fuel cell feedstock.
Fuel cells generate electricity through a chemical reaction instead of combustion. Hydrogen fuel cells are highly efficient and do not produce greenhouse gases. While hydrogen is the most common chemical element in the universe, it must normally be derived from fossil fuels because it occurs naturally on earth only in compound form with other elements in liquids, gases or solids.
The necessary extraction adds to hydrogen fuel cells’ cost and environmental impact. In addition, hydrogen used in fuel cells is a compressed gas, which creates challenges for storage and transportation. Ethanol, an alcohol made from corn or other agricultural-based feeds, is safer and easier to transport than hydrogen because it is a liquid.
“To make it a commercial product where we can fill our tanks with ethanol, the electrodes have to be highly efficient,” Lakshman Ventrapragada, one of the researchers involved in the study, said in a media statement. “At the same time, we don’t want very expensive electrodes or synthetic polymeric substrates that are not eco-friendly because that defeats the whole purpose. We wanted to look at something green for the fuel cell generation process and making the fuel cell itself.”
MIXING A SPICE WITH GOLD
Ventrapragada and his colleagues focused on the fuel cell’s anode, where the ethanol – or other feed sources – is oxidized. Fuel cells widely use platinum as a catalyst. But in addition to being costly, platinum suffers from poisoning because of reaction intermediates such as carbon monoxide. The researchers, thus, used gold as a catalyst and instead of using conducting polymers, metal-organic frameworks, or other complex materials to deposit the gold on the surface of the electrode, they employed curcumin.
Curcumin was used to decorate the gold nanoparticles to stabilize them, forming a porous network around the nanoparticles. The scientists, then, deposited the curcumin gold nanoparticle on the surface of the electrode at a 100 times lower electric current than in previous studies. Without the curcumin coating, the gold nanoparticles agglomerate, cutting down on the surface area exposed to the chemical reaction. “We need this coating to stabilize and create a porous environment around the nanoparticles, and then they do a super job with alcohol oxidation,” researcher Apparao Rao said in a media statement.
Editor’s Note: the following story is by Brooke Myers, long time EOMA member and historian. There are several EOMA members who mine on Cave Creek and nearby properties who I’m betting will enjoy this story, as I did. Jan.
CYRUS TEDROW, CAVEMAN PROSPECTOR-B.A. Myers
Cyrus Tedrow’s tracks have largely been covered by the dust of time, but what is found in the history pages is the story of a man who had considerable grit.
Tedrow was born circa 1834 in Ohio. By the mid 1860s he’d ventured his way into the gold fields of Eastern Oregon. Tedrow partnered up with a man by the name of Richard Kidd. In 1870, Kidd was found in residence at Clarksville (located near modern day Bridgeport). Clarksville was a happening place in 1870. The population included a great number of miners from around the globe but additionally was home to doctors, grocers, saloon keepers, brewers, a shoemaker, a blacksmith, mill workers, and farmers. A nearby “China Town” was occupied by a strong number of Chinese miners as well as an interpreter, doctor, and a handful of prostitutes.
In search of further payouts, Kidd and Tedrow ventured from Clarksville. They established claims referenced as the “Kidd and Tedrow Mining Property” near the head of what is now known as Reagan Creek. This is a small tributary to the larger Cave Creek which feeds into the main Burnt
River approximately ten miles give or take from where the stage stop of Express Ranch, now Durkee, once stood. Tedrow and Kidd reportedly sunk thousands into their mining properties, but neither would find prosperity from this work. They eventually forfeited their claims. In 1906, Richard Kidd died at the age of ninety in Baker City. His death notice described him as a generous soul who died “penniless.”
Following his partner’s death, Tedrow worked for a time as a farm laborer near Express, but then his living arrangements became a little strange, if not desperate.
Tedrow took up residency in a cave in the accurately named draw of Cave Creek; this location being below the claims he once worked with Kidd. Cave Creek is highly hospitable if you happen to be a rattlesnake; they are prolific in this location. The eastern side of Cave Creek is steep pitched and lined with limestone outcroppings that are perforated with caves. It’s a scorching environment in the summer and frigid in winter. Against unbelievable odds Tedrow carved out a living here for close to a decade all while in his seventies!
In 1915, fate intercepted Tedrow’s retirement to the wild. His brother in-law, John Harrison, traveled from Kansas to collect Tedrow. With the help of a local, Harrison located Tedrow in his cave. Tedrow was described to have a beard a foot long and to have only one precious possession, a ragged violin.
Tedrow had been estranged from his family for nearly fifty years. As it happened, Tedrow was not destitute. He was a healthily monied man. Reports vary on the source of his wealth; some saying it was from a long ago made investment and others reporting it was an inheritance.
Tedrow obliged to returning east with his brother in-law and settled back in his home state of Ohio. He died a little over a year later in 1917 and was laid to rest with family in a local cemetery. Irony can have a fierce bite and Tedrow’s isolation offered him no barrier.
After Tedrow and Kidd forfeited their mining claims, Ike McCord and John Reagan staked claim on the same ground. The claims being commonly dubbed from that point on as the “Reagan Mine.” In the year 1915, when Tedrow was found and returned to his family, the mine he and his partner
had worked tirelessly to no avail was reported to be producing handsomely. Its ore being processed at a nearby ten stamp mill.
The Reagan Mine long outlived Kidd, Tedrow, Reagan, and McCord. Its production record is scarce; however, the US mint reported a production of over twenty-four ounces of gold in mill runs completed in the years 1939 and 1940.
References: “Aged Man Lives in Cave While Fortune Awaits Him,” The Ontario Argus, October
7, 1915, Pg. 3, Eugene Weekly Guard (Death Notice for Richard Kidd), February 16, 1906, pg.
2, Findagrave.com, “Hermit Gets a Fortune,” La Grande Observer, October 6, 1915, Reagan
Mine Report, November 25, 1947 retrieved from Oregongeology.org, U. S. Census Bureau
(1870), Clarksville Precinct retrieved from ancestry.com, U.S. Census Bureau (1910), Express
Precinct retrieved from ancestry.com
CAVE CREEK AND MINING IN 2023-Burnt River Gold
There is decent gold all throughout the section of river near Cave Creek. In fact, the Lost Dutchman Mining Association has a camp in the canyon upstream from Durkee, near the mouth of Cave Creek.
Throughout the canyon you will also see a fair amount of hard rock mining activity from the past. Lots of small diggings can be seen up on the hillsides as miners searched for lode deposits. Most of these deposits were minor.
You will find a lot of active claims along the river that will prevent you from prospecting, but many of the tributaries and gulches that drain into the Burnt River, such as Cave Creek, also contain gold.
EOMA ADVERTISING AND SALE LISTINGS
EOMA SILVER MEDALLIONS FOR SALE
EOMA still has silver medallions available. They are currently selling for $50.00 apiece plus $10.00 shipping, handling, and insurance. (Prices are subject to change).
You can order your medallion from the EOMA website and pay by pay-pal. Or, you can send $50 plus $10.00 shipping and handling to EOMA, Medallions, PO Box 932, Baker City, OR 97814, or call 541-310-8510. Also, you can buy them at our EOMA meetings.
NINE UNPATENTED PLACER CLAIMS FOR SALE
These claims are in the Greenhorn Mining District, adjacent to the Parkerville and the Bonanza patented properties. Geiser Bowl- 60 acres, PW #1- 80 acres, PW #6 -100 acres, Black Beauty- 100 acres, Blue Mt Channel #3-100 acres, Carranza-80 acres, Dottie Two-80 acres, Mart Jones-60 acres, Wizzer-80-acres.
Contact LaRayn Rose for list prices, and of course, any reasonable offer will be considered especially for multiple claim purchases. (503) 317-6914
FOR SALE
Gold Bug II detector, Fisher Double Box detector, and an Earth Magnetometer; $1,000 for all.
This magnetometer measures the amount of magnetics in the ground, such as magnetite. Since magnetite is associated with gold, the magnetometer can help greatly with prospecting, since it will show you the amount of magnetite that may well be associated with gold in the ground. The more magnetite, the more gold. These were used very little. Call Chuck at 541-310-8510.
PUMPS FOR SALE
Two water pumps with belt driven clutch system (heavy duty) driven by a 2-cylinder Wisconsin gas engine for $250.
Also, a 5" intake 7" discharge Fairbanks and Morse high pressure pump. Driven by a 30 HP 3 phase electric motor for $450. Call Ken Anderson at 541-523-2521 or 541-519- 9497
WANTED
I would like to rent/lease/lease with option to buy property that may be productive for metal detecting and mining. Especially areas with tailings like the Powder River near Sumpter, or other local areas.
Thanks, Johnny West. Email: jwestboise@gmail.com
WANTED-SMALL HARDROCK MILL
I need a jaw crusher or small hammer mill. Please call Pete at 541-910-9712 if you have one you want to sell.
WANTED-GOLD
Gold Specimens and Gold nuggets, mostly from Oregon mines. Fair prices paid. Also selling Gold nugget jewelry, specimens, nuggets and more. For an interesting and informative experience explore www.northernnevadagold.com . Call Robert 775-455-6470.
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ACTION MINING SERVICES, INC.
AMS is selling out all assay supplies, screens, chemicals and labware! Call for quote and mention this ad for 35% off! Assay supplies, concentrators, impact mills, technical books (for the beginner to the advanced mill man), & more! Call for our free catalog or visit us online! Check out their website for information on wave tables. Want to pick up an order in Plains Montana? That woprks, since we have moved to Plains, Montana…. please call 406.826.9330 to place the order. This way our staff can have it pulled and ready for pick up. Otherwise, we can always ship your order! sales@actionmining.com • www.actionmining.com
AMERICAN EXPLORATION & MINING
EOMA is a member of American Exploration and Mining Association, and many of our members are also individual members. This association keeps miners up on what is happening in the mining industry. To stay up to date on mining issues, you can become a member of AEMA.
by going to their website at https://www.miningamerica.org/
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