Special Section?ProgK

2011ALSOINSIDE

Alger Delta finishing BigBay system upgradeLast stages of projectcompleted in August

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Kennecot, RioTinto contributeto Japan reliefeffortsGiving to the Red Cross

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Mining company working towardroad solutionKennecott reconsideringtruck route to the process-ing facility

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Eagle ProjectdevelopmentsProgress is apparent at theMichigamme Townshipmine site

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Humboldt Millpermits Kennecott processing fa-cility approved by state

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KENNECOTT— SECTION KMONDAY, MARCH 28

PROGRESSA SPECIAL SECTION OF THE MINING JOURNAL

By Journal StaffMARQUETTE — Earlier this month, Ken-

necott Eagle Minerals Co. officials releasedan update on current operations at its Ea-gle Mine on the Yellow Dog Plains and ex-pectations for the future.

“Today, we are proud of the progress weare making toward construction of Eagle, amodern 21st century mine that we hope thegreater Marquette community and Michiganwill be proud to have located here,” said An-drew Ware, KEMC project director. “We ac-cept the responsibility that comes with de-veloping the first mine in Michigan in manyyears, and expect to be held accountablefor our decisions and actions. At the end ofthe day, we believe strongly that Eagle andour presence in the community will beviewed as having contributed to progress.”

Construction began on the surface facili-ties for the nickel and copper mine last May.While Kennecott owns or leases approxi-mately 1,600 acres, Kennecott officials saidthe project’s size and scope is relativelysmall at less than 120 acres. The actualmineral deposit is approximately six acres.

When built, the Eagle Mine will be the on-ly primary nickel mine in the U.S., and is ex-pected to produce 300 million pounds ofnickel, 250 million pounds of copper andtrace amounts of other minerals

Last year’s construction began with a fo-

cus on major bulk civil work (site prepara-tion) and environmental control facilities in-cluding a reverse osmosis water treatmentplant that is currently under construction.

In 2010, construction of the temporarydevelopment rock storage area was com-pleted. That feature is designed as an en-vironmentally secure storage facility whichwill temporarily store development rockgenerated during mine operations. Devel-opment rock is the material that is removedfrom underground in order to access theore body. This rock will be moved to thesurface and stored on the rock storagearea until it can be returned to the mine asbackfill.

Kennecott officials said that to preventthe release of water from the rock storagearea and protect the groundwater quality,the facility is designed with an aggressiveseveral layered liner and leak detectionsystem that exceeds the requirements ofan industrial landfill. All water that doescollect on the storage area will be routed tothe water treatment facility.

This year’s construction activities at themine will focus on completing the watertreatment plant and preparation for under-ground development—construction of theunderground workings are scheduled tostart this year. Completion of this 1,550-yard-long tunnel is required prior to the pro-

duction of nickel and copper ore.Currently, there are 40 Kennecott/Rio Tin-

to staff employed and 70 contract workersat the mine site.

Kennecott/Rio Tinto has several commu-nity representations: Lake Superior Com-munity Partnership member and board ofdirectors representative, Marquette Eco-nomic Club, Michigan Chamber of Com-merce, Michigan Manufacturers Associa-tion, Rotary, Marquette Jaycees, and others.

Kennecott officials said there have alsobeen numerous community contributions.Last year, Rio Tinto’s Kennecott Eagle Pro-ject donated more than $70,000 to commu-nity, human development, education andarts and culture endeavors.

“The areas where we donate are impor-tant to a community’s sustainable futureand include: Teaching Family Homes, BayCliff Health Camp, YMCA ScholarshipFund, and the U.P. 200, just to name afew,” said Matt Johnson, government andcommunity relations manager for Ken-necott. “In 2011, Kennecott Eagle Mineralswill continue to donate to areas that pro-vide support to our community and we willbe looking to for sustainable partnershipsthat help secure the future of the environ-ment in which we mine as well as the eco-nomic and social well-being of the commu-nities in which we work.”

Kennecott recapsrecent progress

Above, an aerial view of the Kennecott Eagle Minerals Companymain construction site. (Photo by EagleEyeImages) Bottom, a for-warder working for Holli Forest Products fells trees along KennecottEagle Minerals Company property. Kennecott’s on-site project com-plex is visible in the background. (Journal photo by John Pepin)

2K -— The Mining Journal, Monday, March 28 PROGRESS2011

Alger Delta finishing Big Bayelectrical system upgrade

Power poles along Marquette County Road 550 were installed as part of an electric system upgrade project.(Journal photo by John Pepin)

By JOHN PEPINJournal Staff Writer

BIG BAY — Lastmonth, the Alger DeltaCooperative Electric As-sociation announced a“major step in overallsystem improvement” inrecently moving servicefor all of its Big Bay elec-tric consumers to a newsubstation.

Alger Delta officialssaid in a news releasethat the new substationfeeding the Big Bay por-tion of the cooperative'selectric system is fedfrom the American Trans-mission Company's138,000-volt transmis-sion line.

"This is one of the finalsteps in rebuilding theBig Bay line and will helpimprove power qualityand service reliability inthis part of our system"said Alger Delta GeneralManager Tom Harrell.

In work done over thepast few years, AlgerDelta rebuilt the powerline feeding its membersalong Marquette CountyRoad 550 and in Big Bayand Powell Township.

Harrell said the newline is built on taller,stronger poles and hasmore capacity to deliverenergy.

The line rebuild project,including the new sub-station, was initiatedwhen the Kennecott Ea-gle Minerals Companyapplied to become an Al-ger Delta member. Thecooperative entered into

an agreement to provideenergy to Kennecott’sEagle Mine, situated onthe Yellow Dog Plains inMichigamme Township.

“As part of the deal,Kennecott agreed to payfor the infrastructure im-provements necessary totake electric service fromthe cooperative,” Harrellsaid. “Kennecott paid ap-proximately $8 milliondollars for the line rebuildand service to its miningoperations.”

The electric lines wereextended from the inter-section of county roads510 and 550 this pastfall, roughly 13 miles tothe mine. Crews buriedthe lines underground tohelp preserve the treecanopy along the fall col-or route.

Kennecott plans to usethe electricity at the EagleMine, with a generatorkept on site as a backup.The mining company be-gan work on surface faci-ities for the mine lastsummer.

Utility crews worked forseveral months to put upthe new poles and electriclines along County Road550 from Marquette northto Big Bay. This past sum-mer, those lines were en-ergized in stages, with thelast stage completed inAugust.

John Pepin can bereached at 906-228-2500, ext. 206. His e-mailaddress is [email protected].

The Mining Journal, Monday, March 28 — 3KPROGRESS2011

Kennecott, Rio Tinto contributeto Japanese emergency relief

A vehicle leaves the Kennecott Eagle Minerals Company main construction site re-cently. (Journal photo by John Pepin)


ISHPEMING — TheKennecott Eagle Miner-als Co. and parent com-pany Rio Tinto are mak-ing contributions to theearthquake and tsuna-mi relief efforts inJapan.

Kennecott officials an-nounced that on behalfof the company’s em-ployees and contrac-tors, the mining compa-ny is contributing$2,500 to the MarquetteCounty CommunityFoundation’s fund re-sponding to theJapanese disaster. RioTinto will donate $1.2million to the AmericanRed Cross in support ofthe tsunami and earth-quake relief efforts.

“Images of the horrificsituation in Japan makeclear the need for helpby those coping withgreat loss and unimag-inable conditions,” saidAndrew Ware, Ken-necott acting project di-rector for the Eagle

Mine. “All of us at Ken-necott feel stronglyabout joining others inMarquette to provideassistance to theJapanese people whoare suffering at this timeand who have a longroad to recoveryahead.”

Kennecott’s contribu-tion to disaster relief ef-forts is being madethrough a fund estab-lished by the city ofMarquette with the Mar-quette County Commu-nity Foundation. Ken-necott officials citedMarquette’s strong tiesto Japan, with Higash-iomi being Marquette’ssister city.

Rio Tinto has multipleoffices and operationsin Japan. The companyhas confirmed that all ofits employees in Japanare safe and accountedfor. Company officialsare continuing to moni-tor the situation.

“As the region contin-ues to experience after-shocks and conditions

remain dire, ourthoughts and best wish-es are with our col-leagues, their friendsand families and thepeople of Japan,” saidMatt Johnson, govern-ment and communityrelations manager, inIshpeming.

The American RedCross is partnering withthe Japanese RedCross Society to helpmeet the needs of sur-vivors. The AmericanRed Cross had con-tributed an initial $10million to the JapaneseRed Cross Society forongoing relief efforts.

To make a donationlocally, contact the Mar-quette County Commu-nity Foundation at 226-7666 or visit www.mar-quettecountycommuni-tyfoundation.org

John Pepin can bereached at 906-228-2500, ext. 206. His e-mail address isj pep in@min ing jou r -nal.net.

4K — The Mining Journal, Monday, March 28 PROGRESS2011


ISHPEMING — Ken-necott Eagle MineralsCompany officials an-nounced that while theystill intend to make im-provements to a trans-portation route from itsEagle Mine via Mar-quette County Road550 and Wright Street,the company will fundpreparation work for acounty road commis-sion permit applicationbeing sought from stateregulators for CountyRoad 595.

The announcementcame almost a monthafter Kennecott officialssaid they would directtheir resources awayfrom helping the roadcommission developthe proposed CountyRoad 595 because var-ious delays would likelypreclude the road frombeing completed in timefor the projected EagleMine production start inlate 2013.

“The Marquette Coun-try Road Commissionformally asked if wewould reconsider ourdecision on CountyRoad 595,“ said Ken-necott Eagle MineralsActing Project DirectorAndrew Ware. “We un-derstand that MarquetteCounty representativessupport construction ofthe road. While we can-not commit to fund theroad construction at thistime we are offering tofund the preparation ofthe permit for submittalto regulators.”

Kennecott said itwould be spending a to-tal of between $3 mil-lion and $4 million forthe engineering, envi-ronmental assessmentand alternatives analy-sis and review forCounty Road 595. As oflate last year, about 80percent of the neces-sary work had beencompleted.

“We are pleased that

Kennecott has recon-sidered its decision andoffered to fund the per-mitting of County Road595,” said Jim Iwanicki,Marquette County RoadCommission engineer-manager. “We look for-ward to further discus-sions to secure an out-come that works for theentire community.”

Kennecott officials al-so announced that thecompany will pay forsnowplowing to keepCounty Road AAA fromthe mine site to CountyRoad 510 open duringthe mine’s developmentand operation. No costestimate was availablefor the plowing.

The snow plowing isintended to keep theroute to the mine openfor employees, but alsoto keep the EMS re-sponse route from Pow-ell Township to the minesite passable, accord-ing to Matt Johnson,Kennecott manager ofexternal affairs.

County Road 595would run south fromthe mine inMichigamme Township22 miles to the Hum-boldt Mill. Compared tothe company’s ap-proved transportationroute, County Road 595would substantially cuttravel time and the 66-mile distance for miningand logging trucks andkeep truck traffic out ofMarquette and the busyU.S. 41 traffic corridor.

But there has beenpersistent opposition tothe $60 million to $80million County Road595 project from envi-ronmental activists anda federal objection is-sued by the U.S. Envi-ronmental ProtectionAgency over several is-sues, most prominentlywetlands destruction.

Because of that oppo-sition, and associateduncertainty of road per-mitting timelines andconstruction costs,

Kennecott said devel-opment of County Road595 would not likely becompleted in time forthe mine’s scheduledproduction start of late2013.

Kennecott officialssaid then they would di-vert their resources andefforts toward upgrad-ing its approved trans-portation route, whichincludes county roadsAAA, 510, 550, WrightStreet and U.S. 41.

Kennecott now plansto improve that ap-proved route, while theroad commission pur-sues the County Road595 project. If theCounty Road 595 pro-ject’s permits are grant-ed, the approved Ken-necott route would like-ly still be used duringconstruction of CountyRoad 595.

Kennecott officialsplan to continue to con-sider possible alter-ations to their approvedroute, to better accom-modate communities.

“In cooperation withlocal officials, we willwork with residents andothers in the communi-ty to solicit input onplans for alternatives,”Ware said.

Kennecott officialssaid Friday minor legalissues need to beworked out with theroad commission relat-ed to the company’sfunding the preparationwork for the CountyRoad 595 permit appli-cation.

“We have several de-tails to work out,” Waresaid. “But we are com-mitted to working withthe county on a solutionthat works for them andone that supports thetimely development ofthe Eagle mine project.”


Company workingtoward solution tohaul road dilemma

A map dsplaying the various routes that could be used in route to the processingfacility. (Journal graphic file)


MARQUETTE — InJune, it was apparentconsiderable work hadbeen progressing on theKennecott Eagle Miner-als Company mine site inMichigamme Township.

Things had changedquickly over severalweeks on the 120-acreproperty leased by Ken-necott from the state, lo-cated north of MarquetteCounty Road AAA,southwest of Big Bay.

Kennecott officialsgranted The Mining Jour-nal a tour of the minesite.

“No Trespassing” signswere posted along chain

link fencing, which linesthe perimeter of the minesite.

Not far to the east, con-tractors working for Ken-necott had previouslyfelled numerous trees. Amain gate area for themine has now been in-stalled just off the countyroad.

A security shack wasbrought to the entry pointin June. The shack hadpreviously been locatedfarther back on the prop-erty, where Kennecott al-so had some trailers situ-ated and where a coreshed building was erect-ed previously.

The roof of the coreshed building—which will

store tools and coresfrom exploration projectsin the area—was com-pleted in May and a tarpwas put over the struc-ture earlier this month.

Security signs markedthe main gate area and anew sign for the mineproject has been erect-ed. The access road intothe mine site was contin-uing to be constructedthis week. Gravel hasbeen poured over theportion of that road lead-ing from the gate to thecounty road, and for agood distance inside thefencing.

After the fence waserected, stripping ofslash and topsoil on the

property began. Crewswere chipping stumpsand other debris. Thechips will be saved andmixed with topsoil to beput back over the siteduring the reclamationphase of the mine.

Non-contact basins forwater were dug and willbe fenced. The dirt fromthose excavations will beused for fill on the ac-cess road constructionproject.

Communications sys-tems have also been in-stalled on the propertywith cellular phone, wire-less Internet, radio com-

munications and satellitetelephone services in-stalled.

Geotechnical drillinghas also been takingplace within the fenceperimeter and also atother sites in the area.These exploratory holesare being drilled in asso-ciation with the project.

According to Kennecottofficials, the Eagle Mineis expected to produceseparate nickel and cop-per concentrates con-taining an average of17,300 metric tons ofnickel and 13,200 metrictons of copper each year

over six years.The main focus of con-

struction in 2010 was ex-pected to be on buildingan advanced water treat-ment plant and relatedenvironmental controlsystems.

Work building the mineis expected to be com-pleted in 2013, with ex-traction processesscheduled to begin latethat same year.


An aerial view of the Kennecott Eagle Minerals Company main construction site in Michigamme Township. (Photo provided by EagleEyeImages)

The Mining Journal, Monday, March 28 — 5KPROGRESS2011

Eagle Minerals CompanyProgress apparent at Michigamme Township mine site


PROGRESS2011 The Mining Journal, Monday, March 28 — 7K


HUMBOLDT — Lastyear, the Kennecott Ea-gle Minerals Companyreceived all the neces-sary permits for its Hum-boldt Mill rock crushingfacility from the MichiganDepartment of NaturalResources and Environ-ment.

Last February, officialswith the DNRE said anAir Use Permit (for newsources of air emis-sions), a National Pollu-tant Discharge Elimina-tion System Permit (forthe discharge of treatedprocess water to surfacewaters), a Non-ferrousMetallic Mineral MiningPermit (for operationand reclamation of thefacility) and an InlandLakes and Streams Per-mit (for placing tailingsfrom the operation in theHumboldt pit) had beenissued to Kennecott.

A preliminary decisionto issue the permits wasissued by the state inOctober 2009. The pub-lic had an opportunity tocomment on the pro-posed decision.

Kennecott officialswere pleased with thestate’s announcement.

“The revitalization ofthe Humboldt Mill makesa great deal of sensefrom a business per-spective, and also fromthe perspective ofadding value to the com-munity through addition-al investment, job cre-ation, and business op-portunities for others inthe area associated withthe mill,” Jon Cherry,general manager of Ken-necott’s Michigan opera-tions, said. “We havehad great confidence inthe project and what itmeans for the communi-ty from the beginningand welcome the per-mits today.”

But opponents of Ken-necott’s Eagle projectand associated opera-tions said they wereweighing the possibilityof mounting a legal chal-lenge to the permits be-ing issued.

Michelle Halley, an at-torney with the NationalWildlife Federation, saidshe thinks the permitswere wrongfully issuedby the DNRE. Halleysaid she is primarily con-cerned about what shesays are unansweredquestions concerninggroundwater contamina-tion. How much contam-ination will there be?Where will it go? Halleyis also concerned aboutair quality with dust in

the air from the millingoperation.

Kennecott plans tocrush and grind rockfrom its proposed EagleMine at the mill to pro-duce nickel and copperconcentrates, which willbe sent by rail to Ontariofor further processing.

The tailings from theprocess will be placed inthe bottom of the Hum-boldt pit to isolate poten-tial contaminants fromthe environment, accord-ing to the DNRE.

After the mill property iscleaned up this year,Kennecott plans to startnext year to build an inde-pendent water treatmentplant at the mill to ensuredischarged water meetsstate and federal stan-dards.

Kennecott will invest$80 million in the project,which is expected to em-ploy about 200 workersduring construction and50-70 full-time employeesonce the mill is operating,which is scheduled for2013.

The Humboldt Mill wasoriginally built to processore from the Humboldtopen pit iron mine. Themine was closed in 1972and the pit was filled withwater.

The mill was later usedto process gold ore, withfinely ground waste rock,or tailings, placed in thepit. The Humboldt site hasnot been used since 1985.

John Pepin can bereached at 906-228-2500,ext. 206. His e-mail ad-dress is [email protected].


Humboldt Mill permitsapproved by state

Above left, the Kennecott Eagle Minerals Company plans to use rock transport trucks like this one to carry rocks from the Eagle Project mine to the Humboldt Mill, shownabove right. The trucks, which would be hosed off before they leave the mine to reduce dust, are said by company officials to be “visually appealing and protective of theenvironment, other vehicles and roadside properties.” (Kennecott Eagle Minerals Company photos)

The revitaliza-tion of the Hum-boldt Mill makesa great deal ofsense from abusiness per-spective, and al-so from the per-spective ofadding value tothe communitythrough addition-al investment,job creation,and business op-portunities forothers in thearea associatedwith the mill

“

- Jon CherryGeneral manager of Ken-

necotts Michigan operations

”

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