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Show OIL & MINING JOURNAL Page 4 September 29, 1969 Page 5 OIL & MINING JOURNAL September 29, 1969 duDddrf few i By Chuck Hayward you enjoy, as we did, the story out of San Francisco a few weeks ago on the elderly couple who made an eloquent plea for a "personal depletion allowance" on taxes which convinced a federal judge that maybe the point deserves Did iN Can a MiNiNq coMpANy Invest $2oo MillioN ThE ColORAdo RockiES ANd NOT dAMAqE ThE QUAlity I he Experiment of tNe consideration? EXPERIMENT IN ECOLOGY ENVIRONMENT? in Ecology began one night in a hotel cocktail lounge. The two men talking were Roger Hansen, director of the Rocky Mountain Center on Environment, and Stan Dempsey, attorney for Climax Molybdenum Co. They hadn't really intended to go to a bar; they had planned to attend a meeting of a group that brought conservationists and Colorado businessmen together to discuss the quality of the environment. But for some reason the meeting had been cancelled, and Hansen and Dempsey began talking. Soon the conversation turned to the new mine that the Climax Co. was planning near the Continental Divide a few miles from Empire, Colo. Scheduled to began operating in 1975, the mine was to be a gigantic undertaking. Just to get the mine started would cost $200 million. But it would definitely be worth it, for under the mountain were 1.8 billion pounds of molybdenum, a metal that is highly valued because of its strength, which it retains even at very high temperatures. Missiles, submarines, autos and nearly all machinery make use of metals that contain small percentages of molybdenum. Both men knew that the mine was needed. But both also knew that the scars and waste heaps of early mines littered the West. Miners had torn up the ground to get at the precious minerals and then left the sites for the passage of time to heal. So why not use this new mine as an Experiment in Ecology? Each step in planning the mine would be considered from both economic and environmental standpoints. an unusual undertaking. On one side were the mining engineers, who had always tried to get ore out of the mountains at the lowest possible cost. On the other side were conservationists, who had always fought every threat to the beauty of the mountains. Businessmen and conservationists would be working together, not after the environment had been polluted, but before the project had ever begun. The first few meetings, both sides agreed afterward, were a little tense. "All my life, Ive looked at things from the economic and engineering standpoint," says Max Gelwix, chief engineer for Climaxs western operations. So when I heard about this plan, I was ready to expect the worst. Its as if some day somebody just came in and started to tell you how to run your business." Bettie Willard, a former president of the Colorado Open Space Council (COSC) and vice president of the Thorne Ecological Foundation, says, "When we first started out, we didn't know what was going to happen. It was It was like everyone was holding on very gingerly, willing to let go whenever it got too hot." But the first few meetings went smoothly. The conservationists knew there was going to be a mine, and they decided that the best they could do was to try to talk Climax into taking steps to protect the environment. The persons from the Climax Co. also started slowly. Rather than talk about specific issues, they began by giving a background on how mines are operated. These things, plus the goodwill that Dempsey had built up working with the other conservation committee, helped remove any possible hostilities. "We now trust one another so that we'll call a spade a spade, ' says Bob Weiner, president of COSC. "There's on either side. If they think it's too exno hanky-pankpensive, they'll say so. If we think something will ruin the landscape, we'll say so." Says Don Stephens, assistant to the Climax vice president, "We want to make it clear that this cooperative effort doesnt require large expenditures. We're trying to do all we can, but we dont want people to think that we're making sacrifices." The meetings have also helped change engineer Gelwix's beliefs. "It's only human. to expect the worst," he says, "but it hasnt turned out that way. Ive found these people to be quite reasonable. Their questions are pointed to the welfare of the general public, which I think is right and proper. My mind wasn't open at first, but it is now." "Some conservationists criticize us," says Miss Willard, "because we might not be as objective when we work so closely with a company. But never feel a moments hesitation to criticize a detail. We've never come near y On September 20, 1969, at a special meeting of the share- holders of WESTERN AMERICAN INDUSTRIES, INCV a Nevada Corporation, a name change was approved by the shareholders . The name was changed to SAC5EnVKIAGflOSS It is requested that brokers: DKKS. commence trading INC. stock instead of Western' American Industries, Inc. stock as soon as possible, and (2) send all Western American shares for exchange for CARDIODYNAMICS to the Company office. (1) CARDIO-DYNAMIC- S, I compromising our ideals." In such an open atmosphere, the conservationists started making suggestions, and this started the Climax engineers thinking. One example was the locations of access roads to the mine site. "Some of the men," says Miss Willard, "went to the chief engineer and told him they were changing the road so that they could save six trees. Its not a big thing, but when you consider what engineers usually do, it was quite something. Another example was the appearance of the buildings at the site. "Usually, they're just galvanized steel," says but for this Henderson Project manager Bill Distler, project, were using colored siding. It should be much more aesthetically pleasing." The Climax Co. also permits public access to much of the land around the mill site that it had to purchase. Before the company bqught the land, the area had been closed to outsiders. 'In the future it will be open to recreation enthusiasts, including hunters and fishermen. But all these examples, everyone agrees, are second to the problem of the tailing. Tailing is finely ground rock that comes out of the mill in the form of 60 percent water, 40 percent solids. Before the mine is exhausted, more than 300 million tons of tailing will have to be disposed of. (For every ton of rock, eight pounds are molybdenum disulfide, 1,992 are waste.) In most mining, the tailing is stored behind dams to prevent stream pollution and allow the water to separate from the tailing artd be recirculated. To enhance this system, the Climax engineers have come up with a fascinating plan. Their first thought had been to dump the tailing on the eastern slope of the Continental Divide, close to the mine shafts. But this would have placed it near a major highway and more populous areas. So the engineers decided to put the tailing pond and a mill on the other side of the Continental Divide, 13 miles from the ore deposit and relatively removed from electric rail system will public view. A standard-gauge- , haul the ore, first through nine miles of tunnel that cuts through the mountain, then four miles above ground, much of it hidden from public view as the railroad slips behind a spur in the mountain. The mill will use water recycled from the tailing pond in order not to require vast supplies of water from the natural system. Above the pond, engineers are planning a series of canals so that the water running off the mountain will bypass the pond and flow down into the natural streams. In this way, the engineers will remove the threat of floods that might sweep down the mountain, through the pond and downstream, carrying tons of the finely ground rock that could pollute vast areas. "I would have laid this whole project out a lot differently 20 years ago," says engineer Gelwix. "But an engineer has to recognize the needs of the country and the temperament of the times. And there's been a tremendous change in temperament in the last 10 years." So far at least, both Climax and the conservationists say they are pleased with the results of the Experiment in It seems Department. One of the results of this is that culverts or trestles are planned so that the railroad will not cut off the natural animal trails in the region. But there are still many unsolved problems. Ecology is a very young science. It is relatively easy to see that the mine might affect a number of things in the area, but it is difficult to make specific predictions. One example of this is the wind. "I need to do considerably more research on wind patterns in the area of the tailing pond," says Miss Willard. "If wind lifts the tailing into the air and drops it on plants, we can have all kinds of problems. "This is why people get frustrated with ecologists. I cant say yes or no. Someday we'll be able to turn to a book of tables and find out that at this project winds in March are 20 miles per hour from the southwest. Then we could combine that with the specific gravity of molybdenum tailing and see if there is going to be any danger of the tailing polluting the air. This is part of the charm of ecology, working out these actual observations. Whatever the wind patterns are, one fact about the Experiment in Ecology is already certain: Private companies and the public can work together to help retain quality environments in the midst of industrial activity. "An ENqiNEER IfAS TO RECOqNiZE . . . tNe TEMPERAMENT of ThE TiMES." first rejected the request of Mr. and Mrs. Francis B. Heisler, then decided to refer the constitutional question to a three-judg- e court. Heisler, a lawyer from Carmel and his wife, Friedy, 68, a psychiatrist, applied for the "personal depletion" allowance under the 73-year-o- federal tax laws which grant depletion allowances on such natural deposits as oil, gas, timber and asbestos. The Internal Revenue Service rejected the suit requesting a refund of 27 per cent on the taxes they paid between 1965 and 1967. The Heislers contend their "natural deposits (their lives) and the improvements thereon (such education and training) will be gradually depleted and in a foreseeable time, in absence of a miracle, will undoubtedly wholly disappear." as wish the Heislers well, and salute the elderly couple who with their suit have managed to snap their fingers at the two things considered inevitable-bo- th death and taxes. We Still, while there is a great deal of SPECIALISTS IN SERVICE FOR IBM EQUIPMENT said"the good men do live after them," and cannot help but feel that whoever favorably influences the life of a child forges a link with eternity. The "mining" of the good in mankind does not deplete the supply in existence, but increases it. We believe, as Shakespeare FACTORY RECONDITIONEdIDCHtYPEWRITERS Starting at $300 -- SALES a 50 per cent depletion allowance wouldn't be in any way out of line for us.) RENTALS REPAIRS jfr-v.J- . it- - iv i, . " if ( m wfM v.A Jtif V kti i te-- f "Our personal relationships," says Miss Willard, "have definitely deepened and our respect expanded over p:i 1 Save at least M i' tf U $9 per unit on j Maintenance Contracts mn ' Ilfn y .V 1 OVER-THE-COUNT- MACHINES PRECISE 209 E. 3rd M. SALT ER PROFESSIONAL PERFORMANCI 4 .i P itn JWuSIME.N'TSECURIIItES Lake Stock Exchange Salt Lake City 2000 Univ. Club Bldg. gj! LAKE CITY, UT I INVEST WITH OUR MARKET SPECIAUSTS give-and-tak- BuaHfsrjs 1 ant! if Members Salt time. they have practical suggestions, we'll work them into our planning. After all, I like to hunt and get out in the wilds more than most people do." Besides the Experiment in Ecology, Climax is also working with government agencies, such as the U. S. Forest Service and the Colorado Game, Fish and Parks truth to their claim, their situation could be looked upon from the other side as well. Their minds and bodies have become the repositories of treasures and in a sense are not depleted, but enhanced. The flight of a bird? The wonder of friendship and of love? IN PROFESSIONAL WORKMANSHIP Ecology. e Gelwix agrees. situation. They It's a we're ask why doing certain things, and we tell them. If ld What can replace the memory of a perfect sunrise or sunset? The touch of a child's hand. INVEST!!! Mail orders accepted from out of town. . that U.S. Dist. Judge Gerald Levin at 136 L South Temple Phone: 1 364-197- Las Vegas .1721 L Charleston Blvd. Phone: 384-29- 95 Provo 163 N. Univ. Ave. Phone: 374-825- 7 J |