I was surfing the web today about commodities prices and after some clicks I was reading about the worlds largest mines, some of them owned by Antofagasta plc, the company that owns Twin Metals and wants to mine sulfide ore at the edge of the BWCA boundary.

A few clicks later and I was at the Twin Metals web site. On their site it says:

"Processing approximately 20,000 tons of mineralized ore per day using underground mining operations."

And I started to do some fuzzy math. If they are mining that amount (in their own words) for say, five days a week. And they want to mine for 20 years, that comes out to 5,200,000 tons of ore per year. After 20 years that's, um, ah, um 104,000,000 tons of ore.

That's one hundred and four billion tons.

And then they have to treat the waste in perpetuity from sulfuric acid formation leaching into the ground water or surface water. I looked up perpetuity and it says- forever and ever. Who are the workers that will keep this going forever, and ever? Who is going to pay these workers. Honest questions. Thanks

Should I be worried?

Tom

I was going to start a new thread, but since you posted what you did...

I received this today.

THIS IS JUST FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY.

Congressmen Tom Emmer and Rick Nolan just introduced an amendment to the House Interior Appropriations bill that would strip federal protection from the Boundary Waters. It would force the Department of Interior to ignore the results of a science-based study on the impact of sulfide-ore copper mining.

This is a blatant attempt to ignore the result of a scientific study and undermine an important environmental review process.

The House is expected to vote as early as next week. We need your help today!

Find contact information for your member of Congress here. Call! Tell them to oppose this amendment and protect the Boundary Waters!

Here are some talking points for you to use:

The amendment would jeopardize the BWCAW in northern Minnesota.
The U.S. Forest Service's ongoing study should be allowed to continue in order to determine the effects of sulfide mining near America's most-visited Wilderness Area. This includes its effects on the outdoor economy and local businesses.
The attempt to undercut the process by Emmer and Nolan is playing politics with a Wilderness Area that is loved by millions of Americans.
Vote NO on Amendment #71 to the House Interior Appropriations Bill.

tumblehome: "

Should I be worried?

"

yep!

I assume those monitoring and maintaining this will be the ones that submit the lowest bid. So again yes I would be worried.

There is no "in perpetuity". The state of Minnesota may ask them to provide some type a surety bond or put up a percentage of the proceeds per year to help defray the cost of future monitoring for a few years. But, if they follow the time tested pattern of mining companies throughout the world, a few years after they are done with the mine Twin Metals will declare bankruptcy and, "VOILA!" No more company and no more liability for Antofagasta. Hello instant EPA Superfund clean up site!

nofish: "

tumblehome: "


Should I be worried?


"

yep!

I assume those monitoring and maintaining this will be the ones that submit the lowest bid. So again yes I would be worried. "

Low bid, that would be nice, that would mean someone other than tax payers would be paying for it, thats not going to happen. After its stopped being profitable it will be sold to some shady outfit with no ties to the original mother company, then that company will go bankrupt and slip its obligations, then it will become a Superfund site and the taxpayers will end up paying for it to be maintained. I don't care what side of the isle you are on, this is a BAD idea, bad bad bad.

6 hours.........

Mining companies themselves say it takes between $3.00 to $3.50 quoted lately to break even. Today copper prices are $2.77 a pound today. Lowest price in years.
Also all that tonnage they move every day is going to average less than 1% copper. This does not include removal of rock and soil to get to that area of concentration.

jcavenagh: "6 hours........."

Tick, tock, tick. Given the current politics, I'm betting this mine will be approved, and 20 years later there will be an environmental disaster that will impact the BWCA. Folks living in the area don't care, why should the majority of Americans? Anti-mining folks are fighting a losing battle. With the cooperation of public apathy, the big money will win. It always does.

tumblehome: "After 20 years that's, um, ah, um 104,000,000 tons of ore.

That's one hundred and four billion tons.
....Should I be worried?"

Probably. Your math is ok, but your end result is 104 million tons. A billion tons is 1000 times that amount. 104 million is still a big number.