Show Drainage Tunnel Under Consideration 0 O. O N N. Malmquist feature writer for tor forThe The Tho Salt Lake Tribune had the followIng following follow follow- ing tag article in the Sunday paper which will prove provo of Interest to all nil re residents of the proposed drainage tunnel district A plan to tie water development and drainage of the Park City and Alta minIng minIng mining min min- ing districts together as a means menns of makIng making mak mak- ing lag both economically feasible Is being Investigated by the U. U S S. S Bureau of Reclamation Re- Re i and the mining division of the U U. U S S. S Bureau of Mines I The project under consideration as a 1 apart part of the proposed Central Utah reclamation re- re reI I and power development would Involve 21 miles for the diversion of of Colorado river basin water into Salt Lake valley alley drainage of the mining areas and possibly for the transportation of ore The rha mining phase of the project would be combined with the Central I Utah declamation and power project both because of the financing factor and because o the mine drainage would involve In- In In 1 volve volvo water rights which would have to tobe tobe tobo be bo taken care caro of through a 1 series of exchanges Feasibility of a drainage tunnel to Increase enormously the volume of ot re recoverable recoverable recoverable re- re coverable ore in the Park City district has been under consideration by they the I mining division of the Bureau of Mines I Ifor for several years But as a strictly mine reclamation project It St presented two formidable problems l problem 1 economic feasibility If u the entire cost had to be assessed against mine beneficiaries and disturbed water I 2 replacement of rights By Dy converting It Into a 1 multiple multi multi- pie purpose project the water right problem problem problem lem could be solved easily and the economic economic econ econ- feasibility could be enhanced greatly great great- ly As a a. result the two government agencies got together and decided to Investigate and evaluate the plan as a n. the Central Utah project The mining phase Is la being studied by Paul T T. Allsman chief of the mining di division division dl- dl vision of the U. U S. S Bureau Dureau of Mines and M. M E. E Volin assistant chief Their findIngs findIngs findIngs find- find Ings will be turned over to the Reclamation Reclamation Reclamation tion bureau for inclusion in the tho Bonne- Bonne yule Basin report which is In process of preparation under direction of E. E O. O Larson regional director and Reid Jerman Jerman Jer- Jer man regional planning engineer I Briefly the plan calls for driving a a. tunnel from the tha west face of the Wai Wa- Wa i catch eatch mountains at Little Cottonwood creek and starting at an elevation of about feet to a 0 point under Alta Atta From there two branches would 1 Be e tn tn one northeast under the west and east Park City districts and the other southeast to a point under Snake Creek near Midway Each of the three segments segments seg seg- ments meats of the Y would be about seven miles mills In length th The southeast branch would be connected connected connected con con- with the proposed Bates reservoir four or five miles above Hailstone on the upper Provo by a conduit and be used for diversion into Little Cottonwood Cottonwood Cottonwood Cotton- Cotton wood of some acre feet of water from the Colorado river basin drainage The tentative plan provides for the use cf about half this water to Irrigate 4 4 Soo acres of ot new land between Big Dig Cottonwood Cotton Cottonwood Cot Cot- ton wood creek and Draper and the other other other oth oth- er half to supplement municipal and industrial supplies for Salt Lake county communities south of Salt Lake City The Tho northeast branch would drain the Park City mining district but this Water water wa wa- ter which might amount to 50 second d feet or more of course would not be a anew anew anew new supply and would have to be re returned returned re- re turned to the water sheds from which it was wa drawn from the Bates reservoir which Is tentatively planned for a 0 ca ca- ca of around acre cre feet teet IMI N I I IMs Mt Ms Larson pointed out that the purpose purpose purpose pur pur- pose would be to drain the mining areas only and no no- the entire mountain The potential significance of the project project pro pro- joe from a 0 mining stan standpoint Is II predicated predicated predicated pre pre- on these facts I The average depth of mining in the Park City district is 1000 to 1600 1500 feet I And some of the operations i t there now Involve expensive pumping The tunnel would provide draining for an additional addition addition- al 1000 to 1500 feet ft and it is considered likely that mining could be conducted I somewhat below the level of the drain drain- I I ago age tunnel In other words It would make available without expensive I pumping a a. deep horizon approximately equal to or greater than the horizon which has been mined during the past part 78 76 years The district has produced about in metals mostly zinc and lead Both of ot these are In short domestic supply supply supply sup- sup ply and strategically Important from a national standpoint Whether the proposed proposed pro pro- proposed posed drainage would make available a 0 greater or lesser amounts of metals that had been taken out to date of course woul would depend upon the content of the yea ell lit at t the lower horizons But Dut one of the factors prompting investigation of the project is Is the assumption that ItI it I would Increase substantially the na nations nation's nations nation's na- na tion's recoverable supplies of lead and zinc Tho The viewpoint of the Bureau of Mines Is that without some major development to take care of the large volume of water water water wat wat- er underlying the district production will diminish steadily thereby ag aggravating aggravating ag- ag the present shortage in lead I and zinc production If it Is found that the tunnel could I bo used feasibly for tran transportation the district would receive an additional I stimulus The ore instead of being hoisted to the surface could be transported transported transported trans trans- ported down tho the tunnel through a transportation Compartment to the mouth of Little Cottonwood canyon and thence to tn the smelters In Salt Bait Lake val val- 1 ley This would reduce mining costs substantially |