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Washington Geology of Part of the Dunn Mountain Quad­ East of the Okanogan River (Eugene P

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Washington Geology of Part of the Dunn Mountain Quad­ East of the Okanogan River (Eugene P _•t 1 , WASHINGTON GEOLOGIC NEWSLETTER APRIL 1980 VOLUME 8 - NUMBER 2 Mount St. Helens-site of recent volcanic activity in the southern Cascades of Washington, see page 18 for details (Photo by U.S. Forest Service). BERT L. COLE COMMISSIONER OF PUBLIC LANDS RALPH A. BESWICK, Supervisor DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES VAUGHN E. LIVINGSTON, JR., Stote Geologist DIVISION OF GEOLOGY AND EARTH RESOURCES Midnite mine- Washington' s oldest producing uranium mine. LOCATION MAP' DIVISION OF GEOLOGY ANO EARTH RESOURCES DEPT SOCIAL ANO HEALTH SERVICES i ~I:~ lf\l ~ ~ ~ GEOLOGY ANO EARTH ~ ~ 1tJ ~ RESOURCES mTLeffoc1111 TACOMA S~TTLE- STATE CAPITOL EXIT DEPT HIGHWAYS CITY CENTER FREEWAY «< EXIT PORT LA~= STATE CAPITOL EXIT ~ Moiling address: Deportment of Natural Resources Division of Geology and Earth Resources Olympia, WA 98504 (206 ) 753-6183 Division Manager Vaughn E. (Ted) Livingston, Jr. Assistant Division Managers Donald M. Ford and J . tric Schuster Geologists Bonnie Bunning Carl R. McFar land Will iam Phillips Keith Stoffel Charles W. Walker Allen J. Fiksdal Glennda B. Mclucas Weldon W. Rau Gerald W. Thor sen Timothy J. Walsh Mike Korosec Wayne S. Moen James G. Rigby Ellis R . Vonheeder Librarian Secretaries Laboratory Cartographers Publications Connie Manson Pamela Whitlock Arnold Bowman Keit h Ikerd Laura Bray Anne Marie Bammert Mark Macleod Wan da Walker Gina Tomasino Janet Miller The Washington Geologic Newsletter, a quarterly report of geologic articles, is published by the Division of Geology and Earth Resources, Department of Natural Resources. The newsletter is free upon request. The division also publishes bulletins, Information circulars, and geologic maps. A list of these pubI ications will be sent upon request. URANIUM IN WASHINGTONlf Introduction Nuclear power growth establishes the will be developed at both properties; however, basic demand for uranium in the United States. it is doubtful that production from new re­ Forecasts indicate that by 1985 around 16 per­ serves will exceed past production. The pro­ cent of the nation's energy will come from duction of uranium from areas outside the nuclear power plants. To assure an adequate Spokane Indian Reservation depends to a domestic supply after 1983, all known uranium large part on an increase in the price of uran­ deposits in the United States will have to be ium oxide. However, the combined known explored and developed, The free world's reserves of several past producers appear to uranium resources of about 1. 5 million tons of be sufficient for only 2 or 3 years of mining. U 30 8 in conventional deposits are less than Thus, if Washington is to maintain its uranium half the minimum projected requirements to production beyond the next 15 years, addi­ the year 2000, tional deposits will have to be discovered and The largest known reserves of uranium developed. in Washington are on the Spokane Indian Res­ ervation. Deposits held by Western Nuclear, Washington Uranium Deposits Inc. are reported to contain 14.2 million pounds of uranium oxide, and reserves at Until 1954, despite persistent search, Dawn Mining Co. 's Midnite mine probably ex­ no uranium occurrences of significance had ceed 2 million pounds. Uranium ore is also been found in Washington. In the summer of present in the Mount Spokane area of Spokane 1954, uranium minerals were discovered by County, as well as in t he Lost Creek area of the LeBret brothers on the Spokane Indian Pend Oreille County; however, the total re­ Reservation in Stevens County. The discovery serves for these areas are probably less than was made while prospecting for tungsten at 100,000 pounds. Uranium reserves at the night, with an ultraviolet lamp. This find Midnite mine appear to be sufficient for at became the Midnite mine (fig. 1, no. 1) and least 3 years of continuous operation; the touched off a uranium boom in the state. reserves at Western Nuclear's Sherwood prop­ Shortly thereafter uranium was discovered on erty are sufficient for at least 15 years of the Dahl farm on the west slope of Mount production. Undoubtedly, additional reserves Spokane (no. 2), some 40 miles east of the 1/ Condensed from Energy ReBourceB of Washington, Washington Division of Geology and Earth Resources Information Circular 50, p. 83- 87; and Uraniwn in WaBhington State: Proven deposits and exploration targets, by P. Clinton Milne : In The Canadian Mining and Metallurgical Bulletin, April 1979. r SltVtNS - ~ OKANOGAN FERiY ~·3 ;-t'lftllf I \ ,- ,-' ,! ~/ L. , 12 ' .s • I ' I e6 ' I : ' 13e'1 t 7~ a. '-, ' \ ' I ' 1,4 ', I f • • ' 1 I / '•9 1.5 ", ,....-, t ' \.!I I ' ,-, ,-,r- \ I / .l ' t I ,. \ I ( r - { ­ \__ ; ;OUGlAS . .-..J_ .... " ': ~, • 2 CLA.llAM I J., , .,_..,. -\ r--sv 1 I - - - - JfffEUON ' - - 16. ,,./ } : ... _., I\ \--'1..,,...... J (- 1 I r t ) t I \ t; I t t ,,-·\_ ,' ,.,..., : I 10• / r / I [ I 1 21 ' -, ' ,- --~ I • '.._ ',C.!!~AN '--, / GlANT I : - -.. \ '- - _1 f I LIMCOlN I s,o"A.NE , , '- ~----------r-'------- -1 , ... _.,-_ ) -: I ADAMS WHITMAN P!EICf ' - [_ J 1 t, ' -, -, r I \ : t,, ,' ', \ : I --- : ,_ : , __ __ _ \ ' ; PAClflc·-,--.,_ __T):!~S_!ON \ \ .22 '. t ,---- r ~ :_ ---.>.- .. - - ,---.l\ --,,_ KlTT ITAS II I ,-/ l ) -YAKIMA \ ,,-,,,----,i,viii,.,---, ,---, I I ,. - - I I ,' ' : I I ', ,_,,,.·/..---7 ", 1 "" 1 1 ,---'---------L!.WIS \ t 1, __Gdf1£l0 \ 1 r 1"'--1"1,t : COW\ITZ .,.-SKAMANIA!- : \ I ~ .r,J'--~ -~"4 ... : : I I I / l colUMIIA\.., l ~ I : I I,, ,/ ·;_ I 1 I I I -.! -, I I1 1 , 1 I \ : I - ; ,-,--JII :-- - --- ---KLICKITAT-- -----,I I/ WA~~lLA : I1 l1 ASOTIN\ V t J t IENTON - - - I I t I ,.------ - ' ~u i / _ _ _J__ -~--_,,,--'-' - !...,.--' __ , '\..,. - EXPLANATION 1051 CREEK 14 HOlOEN lUIY lfEfU CLAIM Uronium occurrence, 6 " • 7 IAILWA'f OtKf 16 WINEl/\P CANYON Antos of numerous occurren,e, 8 SOUTH SKOOKUM lAKE 17 MACKINAW Area name, 1 MIDNIGHT 9 STAlllGHT UlANIUM, 18 KULEIL ,.o,urr 1 • 2 MOUNT SPOKANE 10 flSH LAU 19 KIOMONA MINE 3 OllfNT 11 s,oKANf MOLYIOENUM 20 MOUY PI0,£1..-t·r I 12 AENEAS 21 .AINY MINE 4 SHUMAN ClEfl P/\55 NANCY CUU 40 0 40MllU ST. PETH CUElt 13 SAN ,Oil 22 8UM.P~NG \.AKE FfCURE - 1. -Uranium in-·Washington; Western Nuclear's mill at their Sherwood mine Mining operations at Midnite mine 4 Midnite mine and about 30 miles northeast of Dawn Mining Co. is currently mining uranium Spokane. This became the Daybreak mine ore with an average grade of about O. 10 per­ cent for milling at 450 to 500 tons per and marked the d iscovery of a second uranium u3o8 area in the state. Other discoveries were day at its Ford mill. The mine has proven made, but none proved to be as important as reserves of about 2. 25 million pounds of u o 3 8 the original two. As a result of these dis­ at a grade of 0. 145 percent (Klobusicky, 1978, coveries, a mill was built in 1957 at Ford, in written communication), with a cutoff grade Stevens County, to treat the ores, and Wash­ of a leaching site for low-grade ore ( 0. 03 to ington became an important producer of uran­ 0.05 percent ups>. ium. Around 1968, the Sherwood mine south Historically, mining was initiated at of the Midnite was acquired by Western Nuc­ the Midnite in 1955 and continued through lear, Inc. and exploration drilling disclosed 1962; milling of stockpiled ore continued until a large deposit of low-grade uranium ore. 1965. Mining and milling started again in 1970 In 1977, a mill was built at the deposit, and and has continued to the present. To date, in 19 78, the Sherwood mine became the state's Dawn has produced about 10 million pounds largest producer of uranium. of . up8 Exploration for uranium in Washington Western Nuclear began milling its stock­ State has been at a relatively high level of piled ore at the Sherwood mine recently at up ac tivity for the last several years. The esca­ to 2,000 tons per day. The ore grade runs lating dollar value for u o , the new Sherwood from 0.02 percent cutoff to a high of 0.15 3 8 project owned by Western Nuclear, Inc., and percent and average~ about 0, 08 per­ u 3o8 the numerous uranium occurrences and diverse cent , with ore reserves at 8 million up8 potential environments for uranium ore in tons containing 14,200,000 _pounds of . u3o8 northeastern Washington, where approximately The stripping ratio varies from 2: 1 for the 80 percent of the known uranium occurrences "east orebody" to 4 : 1 in the "west orebody," in the state are located (Ferry, Stevens, Pend but the ratio may at times be as high as 20 : 1 Oreille and northern Spokane Counties}, ap­ locally. Within the scope of mine design, the pear to account for this exploration intensity. total rock material is 66. 7 million tons, and on Twenty to twenty- five companies have been a tonnage basis the waste-to-ore ratio is 7. 3: 1. active in northeastern Washington in recent Potentially, the Sherwood project will produce years. about 1. 1 million pounds of u o per year. 3 8 The state's two active uranium mines are on the Spokane Indian Reservation, ap­ Future of Uranium Mining in Washington proximately 35 air miles northwest of Spokane, near the confluence of the Columbia and Discoveries made to date are more than Spokane Rivers. This area represents the sufficient to prove that the geological environ­ focal point for uranium exploration in Wash ­ ment in eastern Washington is favorable for ington. The mined-out Daybreak mine in uranium deposits, and the chances for addi­ northeastern Spol<ane County is the only other tional discoveries in eastern Washington must uranium mine in Washington.
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