Lines to mines: Miners ask for power lines, pipe lines to resources
The governor’s Roads to Resources endeavor is not incentive enough for Alaska’s miners, according to industry representatives.
Representatives for the Alaska Miners Association and Council of Alaska Producers gave the mining industry’s annual update to the Legislature at a Joint House and Senate Resources Committee meeting Wednesday.
Alaska Miners’ Association Executive Director Fred Parady asked the state for "lines to mines" — state-built power lines, pipelines and other infrastructure to spur exploration and development of Alaska’s mineral resource.
“When mining companies are doing so well,” Rep. Scott Kawasaki D-Fairbanks asked, "and let's be honest, you guys are doing well,” how do legislators convince constituents that building infrastructure for the mining industry is a good use of public funds?
Mike Satre, executive director of the Council of Alaska Producers testified to the joint committee mining companies are not going to wait for the state to build infrastructure. However, public and private cooperation, like Greens Creek’s switching from diesel generation to hydroelectric, might be a good way to leverage resources, Satre said.
Parady said the Alaska Miners Association opposes a possible intervention by the EPA into the Pebble Mine’s permitting process. The EPA has veto power over the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers or the state of Alaska when assigning a site for the discharge of dredged or fill material, commonly referred to as a 404(c) review. The Environmental Protection Agency may decide on the 404(c) status of the Pebble Mine project.
The Miners Association supports a “rigorous state permitting process,” Parady said. The legislature should make sure it is well funded and imbued with integrity, he said.
“Put a permitting practice in place that Alaskans trust,” Parady said.
Opponents of the proposed Pebble Mine have expressed doubt Alaska’s regulatory system can handle a project the size of Pebble.
To give an example of Alaska’s mining potential, Parady compared Alaska’s Usibelli Coal Mine, which extracts all of Alaska’s 2.2 million tons of coal per year, to Wyoming’s 450 million tons. Though there are location and infrastructure differences between the two mining states, “that gap shows vast potential,” Parady said. "Alaska's opportunity is tremendous,"
Southeast Alaska will play a larger role in mining industry discussions as Bokan Mountain’s rare earth element potential is explored, Satre testified for the Council of Alaska Producers.
Ucore Rare Metals is currently doing an inventory of the site’s potential. Rare earth elements are used in consumer electronics and renewable energy technology. The rare earth element neodymium allows for the super-strong magnets that make tiny motors powerful enough to vibrate cell phones and spin memory disks thousands of rotations a second. Bokan contains an “incredible amount of rare earth minerals," Satre said. And Alaska is strategically positioned to be a world player in rare earth minerals, he said.
Exploration is also large economic driver. Even though exploration does not always lead to an operational mine, the money spent is none the less felt, Satre said.
Last year 60 exploration projects each spent over $100,000 and 30 more projects spent more than $1 million a piece, he said.
And the exploration money wasn’t wasted no matter the outcome, Satre said. The $3 billion on exploration "dramatically enhanced our understanding of our resources,” Satre said.
Jim Calvin, a principal with McDowell Group, said statewide mining employs 4,500 people directly. In large mines, Alaska residents make up 70 percent of the workforce.
• Contact reporter Russell Stigall at 523-2276 or at russell.stigall@juneauempire.com.
Comments (24)
Add commentWe got your back...
.....Just keep digging.
Partners
If the mines want to tap into State funding, then the State should become an equity partner of the mines. No handouts.
I wonder...how many employees of mines in Alaska are NOT Alaskan residents?
My math may be a little weak, but...
Lat, my math may be a little weak, but if "Alaska residents make up 70 percent of the workforce" in all Alaskan mines, doesn't that leave 30 percent as non-residents?
I actually know some people that worked at the mines here in town that were originally local hires, but once they were making good money and got on those two week on, two week off schedules, they moved down south. Don't know what the mines can do about that.
Balderdash
Another typical industry that cries continually about keeping the State and Feds out of industry. They cry over being over-regulated and over taxed. But when it comes to the infrastructure building they rally to have the State fund the projects.
In return they promise nothing for the States investment while increasing profits to their own coffers. What happened to the days when mines went into the wilderness and built whatever was necessary to produce profits with their own funds? Now it is commonplace to have government build those necessary things while complaining that the taxes on profits are to high.
what about human and cultural rights of Alaskans?
"Alaska's opportunity is tremendous" sure this is true for the Mining Industry but Who Pays the Price – for the loss of land; contamination of our air, water and soil; exposure to toxic chemicals, and other hazardous wastes.. the public does.
There is too much environmental degradation going on in our state and this request is over the TOP.
What about the human and cultural rights of Alaskans to continue to live our way of life in our own state?
@58 - that's a socialist
@58 - that's a socialist mindset, always screaming about state ownership of resources. That's called nationalization.
We don't do that in America so much - we like private ownership or capitalism.
Lately, state and federal funds used to supply services to private entities have become the rallying cry of the progressives. Like Elizabeth Warren telling private business owners that they don't really deserve their profits because they're using state built roads and electricity, etc. that they didn't directly build. Which is ridiculous because, I guess, she doesn't know about TAXES that private businesses pay.
Stupid socialist ideology...that's all.
Trash a mountain for rare
Trash a mountain for rare earth elements to make:
Super-strong magnets, tiny motors powerful enough to vibrate cell phones and spin memory disks...
Does this make any sense, how much of this stuff can be found in our dumps?
Sources?
Ever notice how the McDowell group never cites their sources or any references for the numbers they generate. Also there seems to be a huge discrepancy between the McDowell numbers and what is reported to the Alaska Department of Labor.
The last time that any of this was "truthed" was in 2002 by Dr. Thomas Power, professor of economics university of Montana. One of his conclusions was: "the very modest role of metal mining is often obscured be exaggerated estimates of metal mining's impact built around double and triple counting or counting value not created in Alaska. Such exaggerated estimates of impacts ignore basic economic accounting rules established almost a century ago."
same old subsidized story
I agree with Islander above, which also reminds me of DOT Deputy Commissioner Pat Kemp a few weeks ago. When talking about Roads to Resources and other transportation projects, Kemp said that Alaska's transportation is more heavily reliant on Federal Highways and US DOT monies than any other state in the country. In the same breath, Kemp complained that AK DOT is sick of having to "put up with federal regulations." Classic.
The mining industry in Alaska is effectively telling the state to "build our roads, connect us with power, but don't even think about making us behave responsibly." Same old industrial-scale subsidy story...
The only end-to-end rare
The only end-to-end rare earth mine-->refinery is in China. They supply 97% of this stuff to the rest of the world.
I'm guessing quite a bit of the added value happens after the ore is out of the ground so unless someone invests in a refinery we'll just be shipping raw resources to China where the majority of the value will be added by Chinese labor.....
There are certain themes that keep showing up.
Every time a special interest group goes to dun the government, there is a certain language & logic used. These guys just want to see if the government will pay up & cover some of their expenses. They feel government may be pro money/mining at this time, so it can't hurt to try. Shucks, any handout they get will be added to their bottom line. They feel they should have to act like law respecting taxpayers and be politically correct, so they say something like:
'The Miners Association supports a 'rigorous state permitting process,' Parady said. The legislature should make sure it is well funded and imbued with integrity, he said.
But then again they really don't mean it. So they say something like this:
'Parady said the Alaska Miners Association opposes a possible intervention by the EPA into the Pebble Mine’s permitting process.'
Then they polish the whole pitch by saying:
'Put a permitting practice in place that Alaskans trust, Parady said.
Which really means: 'put a permitting practice in place that I like, since I am an Alaskan. Forget the American government and their silly rules, just FIX IT.'
Pretty cheeky, huh? What do YOU think of some one who goes up to the government and looks them right in the eye and says:
'...the Alaska Miners Association opposes a possible intervention by the EPA into the Pebble Mine’s permitting process.'
Whoa. Sounds like a rebel to me. Sorry you don't like the E.P.A.
let China have it
Let China have the ree magnets, without labor and environmental regs, we could never compete anyway. Remember the demand side of supply and demand. We control the demand. Anyways China is only a convenient bogy man for our fear mongering, tribal mentality. They actually, very benevolently, help fund our government.
@58 - that's a socialist mindset, always screaming about state o
@58 said- "that's a socialist mindset, always screaming about state ownership of resources. That's called nationalization".
I agree, we shouldn't nationalize Mining. On the other hand, Mining wants the government to give them resources (money, roads, power lines) funded by money that belongs to all Alaskans. If we are an investor, why shouldn't the people of Alaska get a guaranteed return on our investment? Otherwise it's just corporate welfare.
"Lines to Mines" when were
"Lines to Mines" when were cutting education funds?
My hat goes off to Rep. Scott Kawasaki D-Fairbanks. Thank you, sir. Lets hope all of legislators are working for the public.
Boy, all the flies are out trying to get Alaskan's resources.
Wrong interpretation Spoor
Actually Spoor, what he was complaining about (and who can blame him) is that the EPA can excercise its veto power before a permit is applied for or while an application is pending.
So if the Army Corps of Engineers first waits to see the scientific data and proposed mitigation controls before saying yes or no to a permit application, why shouldn't the EPA do the same thing?
That's why we have a permitting process. Otherwise, for any large scale development project we'd get a rubber stamp "yes" under every Republican administration and a "no" from every Democratic one.
I may be mistaken, but I
I may be mistaken, but I believe our state constitution says all of the resources in our state belong to all of the residents of this state. So let's implement a tax system on mines just as we do with oil and create a second permanent fund type account similar to the current one, so these mines are benefiting us all in a more productive way.
sure, Cdimond
All we need to do is figure what the dollar amount will replace the public's interest in clean water, sustainable fisheries, recreation, tourism, subsistence and culture for an eternity.
@akguy
These mines are already operating. As a state and people we should be making better returns on our tax dollars from these mines. Not sure what your point was. Close all operating mines? We have already established rules, and regs for these mines to operate.
What's the opportunity cost
What's the opportunity cost in lost fish per year? Let's say a "clean" mine only kills 200 King salmon per year. I'm not sure how many viable adults a single fish could produce on average but let's say each of those 200 fish could add 20 adult fish to the total run when they return. We're up to 4000 offspring lost per return which each could've produced 20 fish per return which would've produced 20 fish each when they return and on and on it goes for the life of the mine and most likely well after.....
Maybe one of the smart biometricians at ADFG could chime in and call BS or crunch more accurate numbers but in any case it's pretty clear that the nominal value of fish lost would be extremely high after only a few years so the mine would have to write some big checks to the people of Alaska whether the mine was successful or not just to compensate for the lost revenue from the fish not to mention compensating the people for the mineral resource........
Disclaimer - I'm not a statistician....
Does anybody watch "Gold
Does anybody watch "Gold Rush?" Aside from the Schnabels, nobody on that show is from Alaska. A lot of the characters on "Bering Sea Gold" are from out of state. Let them build their own roads.
Uninformed Maybe?
It seems like many people are just uninformed on this topic. If you really want answers to your questions, call a regulator. I'm sure there is a mining section at the Department of Natural Resources.
Just like the stadiums
This reminds me of the big stadiums in Seattle. Build it and they will come. Have the public build the mega stadiums and the team owners, networks, league, etc will make huge profits. What do the taxpayers get? It will fill restaurants and hotels, that's it. All these mines need workers, how do we...provide housing, schools, law enforcement, food, water, all the ills of a booming population. Alaska needs a much bigger cut.
mines made 3.8 billion on
mines made 3.8 billion on state resources, how much did the state get for those resources?
mines made 3.8 billion on
mines made 3.8 billion on state resources, how much did the state get for those resources?