Scouts Get a Lesson in Mining

If it can't be grown, it must be mined. These words were repeated several times to Venture Crew 2861 and Boy Scout Troop 861 this past weekend as they traveled to Butte to earn their Mining in Society merit badge. This merit badge was released in 2014 and was developed so that Boy Scouts across the United States would be exposed to the mining industry, learn why mining is important to our society and the everyday things that they use and depend on.

The scouts met Assistant Professor Chris Roos and Geological Engineering student Jessica Scanlan at Montana Tech to begin their journey into the mining industry. Safety is paramount in mining and they began their day learning about safety procedures and general information about mining in Montana, why it is important, reclamation, and discuss how different things would be if we didn't have the minerals needed for items we use every day. Most of us view mining as looking for silver, gold, copper, etc. You don't think about mining in eastern Montana, but the Fort Peck Dam was built by mining the dredge cuts, we must mine the minerals and rock to make cement for building, even farmers rely on mining as modern agriculture depends upon mined products used in crop fertilizers and animal feed supplements.

The scouts were able to visit two mines in Butte. The Orphan Boy mine, which is an educational underground mine on the Montana Tech campus, and the Continental Pit, owned and operated by Montana Resources. The Orphan Boy mine is the underground education center for Montana Tech, the only on-campus experimental mine in the world. It is a one-of-a-kind facility where students get hands-on experience with almost all aspects of modern underground hard rock mining including drilling, blasting and bolting. The scouts placed their "brass" on the board before entering the mine and continued into the dark. It was interesting to see timbers in place that had been there since the late 1800s, and a mix of modern equipment, old tracks, and contemplation about the miners working the area over 100 years ago. After touring the Orphan Boy mine, we were treated to a BBQ lunch and got to try our hand at Jack Leg drilling (This is the standard drill used in today's mining competitions. The "jack" in jackleg came from the use of the term jack to describe any immigrant miner from Cornwall, England. These highly-skilled men dominated the hard rock workforce of the era. "Leg" in jackleg, referred to a compressed-air cylinder that is used to change the elevation of the drill and apply pressure against the rock. Jackleg drills are still used in today's mining processes) and a friendly Mucking competition (Mucking is the processes used by miners to remove the blown up rock from the mine. This crushed rock is referred to as muck. Historically muck was hand shoveled into mine cars. The contest tries to replicate this process by making contestants fill a mine car with either crushed rock or gravel as quickly as possible, using a flat-faced shovel or grain scoop, push the car down the track and back, then dump the car. The mine car, or container, is generally of 3/4- to 1-ton capacity). The scouts really got a good idea of the hard work involved in mining, especially in a historical perspective.

Our next visit was to Montana Resources at the Continental Pit. There we had a brief overview history of the Berkeley Pit and the current operations at the Continental Pit. Safety, innovation, environmental stewardship, and community are important to them, and their presentation included information on how they incorporate all of it into daily operations. Our tour took us via bus down into the pit where we were able to see the electric shovels fill the 240 ton capacity trucks to haul. An efficient operation, we also learned that they use their horns to signal each other in the process, and that they drive on the left side of the road so that if there is an issue/accident, the drivers are not stuck between the trucks. Further on our tour we visited the area where the rod mills and ball mills pulverize the crushed ore to a fine powder. Water is added to the process which makes the pulverized rock slurry. After this process we moved to the flotation cells. The slurry is pumped into the flotation cells in the concentrator where lime and other chemicals are added to liberate the metal sulfides. Molybdenum and copper is extracted, separated and dried for shipping.

Our next stop of the day was to see Berkeley from the viewing platform. We had glimpses of it on our previous tour, but from the viewing area you can see how really large it is!

As our day started with information regarding safety in mining, we concluded our touring day with a visit to the Granite Mountain Memorial. The Granite Mountain/Speculator Mine Fire was the worst disaster in metal mining history, although the rescue mission was a remarkable accomplishment. Rescue crews succeeded in searching over 30 miles of drifts and crosscuts, and at least 15 miles of stopes, raises, and man-ways. This was done in just over 7seven days, in an environment saturated with carbon monoxide and dense, tar-laden smoke. One hundred fifty-five bodies were recovered and removed, all without the loss of a single rescue worker. The scouts listened to the stories and information at the monument, thinking about those lost 99 years and 2 days prior to the day of our visit.

On Saturday we were able to take in Miners Union Day and visit the World Museum of Mining. There they wandered through the re-creation of a 1890's mining town, historical mining equipment, and see just how cramped the "cage" was that miners were lowered and hoisted in and out of the mine with. In addition, thanks to the Montana Tech Mining Team, they got to try their hand at gold panning and hand steeling. In addition to the mining tours, we also visited the Ringing Rocks in Pipestone, Mont., and Lewis and Clark Caverns. We also did a little geo-caching and letter-boxing along the way. In all we had a fantastic trip, with camping, leadership, fellowship and education.