BRITISH COLUMBIA DEPARTMENT OF MINES VICTORIA, B.C. Hon. R. E. SOMMERS, Minister. JOHN F. WALKER, Deputy Minister. H. C. HUGHES, Chief Inspector of Mines. G. CAVE-BROWNE-CAVE, Chief Analyst and Assayer, HARTLEY SARGENT, Chief, Mineralogical Branch. P. J. MULCAHY, Chief Gold Commissioner. To His Honour CLARENCE WALLACE, C.B.E., Lieutenant-Govermr of the Province of British Columbia. MAY IT PLEASE YOUR HONOUR: The Annual Report of the Mining Industry of the Province for the year 1954 is herewith respectfully submitted. R. E. SOMMERS, Minister of Mines. Minister of Mines’ Office. May, 1955. 15 19 19 20 22 23 24 26 27 28 29 32 33 35 37 37 38 39 40 44 45 46 47 52 53 53 53 53 54 54 56 57 58 2 61 63 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE MINISTER OF MINES, 1954 Introduction A Report of the Minister of Mines of the Province of British Columbia has been published each year since 1874. The Annual Report records the salient facts in the progress of the industry, also much detail about individual mining operations, including those undertaken in the search for, exploration of, and development of mineral deposits, as well as the actual winning of material from mineral deposits. The Annual Report of the Minister of Mines now contains introductory sections dealing with Statistics and Departmental Work, followed by sections dealing with Lode Metals; Placer; Structural Materials and Industrial Minerals; Petroleum and Natural Gas; Inspection of Lode Mines, Placer Mines, and Quarries; Coal; and Inspection of Electrical Equipment and Installations at Mines and Quarries, each with its own table of contents. A table listing the properties described, in geographic groupings, precedes the index. An introductory review of the mining industry and notes at the first of several of the main sections deal generally with the industry or its principal subdivisions. Notes in the various sections deal briefly with the work done on individual properties during the year or describe a property in more complete detail, outlining the history of past work and the geological setting as well as describing the workings and the mineral deposits exposed in them. Some notes deal with areas rather than with a single mine or eropertu. The work of the branches of the Department is outlined briefly in the section on Departmental Work. This section is followed by notes dealing briefly with the work of the British Columbia or Federal Government services of particular interest to the mining industry of British Columbia. Information concerning mine operations and some of the activities of the Inspection Branch of the Department of Mines is contained in the section on Inspection of Lode Mines, Placer Mines, and Quarries, early in the section on Coal and in the section on Inspection of Electrical Equipment and Installa- tions at Mines and Quarries. The section on Statistics begins with an outline of current and past practice in arriving at quantities and calculating the value of the various products. 9 Review of the Mining Industry in British Columbia, 1954 By Hartley Sargent The metals, industrial minerals, fuels, and structural materials produced by the mineral industry of British Columbia in 1954 had a combined value of $153,377,315, compared with $152,628,683 in 1953. The products include twenty-three mineral sub- stances and three structural products manufactured from mineral substances. Only for the structural products-cement, lime, and clay products-does manufacturing enter into the value assigned. Dominantly the value assigned is that of basic products won from natural deposits by the mineral industry. The industry processes ores of metals to produce high-grade concentrates or relined metals, and some industrial minerals are also concentrated. The products of the industry are mainly basic commodities that secondary industry manufactures into products of much greater unit value. In so far as the manufacturing is done in British Columbia, the increase over the value of the basic commodity makes a further contribution to the economy of the Province. A notable example is the industrial mineral, sulphur, to which the value assigned is $2,30X,422. Some of the sulphur is used in the production of wood pulp, and some is sold as sul- phuric acid or for use in the manufacture of sulphuric acid, but most of the sulphur is used in plants at Trail and Kimberley in the production of fertilizer that has a market value several times that assigned to sulphur. The details of 1954 mineral production are set out in Tables III and VII& The prices in Canadian funds used in valuing the principal metals and concentrates are listed on page 18. The selling prices for most of the metal produced are in United States funds. The United States dollar was at a discount in Canadian funds throughout 1954; the discount averaged 2.6 per cent, compared with 1.6 per cent in 1953. United States prices for copper, lead, and zinc rose moderately during 1954, and the price for silver was con- stant. The greater discount resulted in somewhat lower average prices for silver, cop- per, and zinc in Canada; however, the price for lead was somewhat higher than in 1953. Most of the copper produced went to the Tacoma smelter mainly in the form of concentrates, but in part as dross shipped from the lead smelter at Trail for recovery of the copper content. Lead and zinc refined at Trail were shipped to other Provinces of Canada, to Europe, including the British Isles, and to the United States. Additional quantities of lead and zinc were shipped to United States smelters in the form of con- centrates. Copper continued to enter the United States duty free, and the duties on lead and zinc continued to be: On lead in ores and concentrates, 0.75 cent per pound; on lead in bullion, 1.06 cents per pound; on zinc in concentrates, 0.6 cent per pound; on refined zinc in slabs, 0.7 cent per pound. Compared with 1953, the quantity of gold produced was essentially unchanged; an increase in the output of lode mines offset the decreased output of placer gold. Loss of lode-gold output from Portland Canal was mnre than offset by increases in the Tul- sequah, Wells, Bridge River, and Hedley areas. The Island Mountain mine was taken river by The Cariboo Gold Quartz Mining Company Limited in August, and continued in production as the Aurum mine, the ore being trucked to the mill at the Caribou Gold Quartz mine. Significant contribution to the output of gold is made by base-metal mines, including the copper mines and some. of the silver-lead-zinc mines. The Big Bull and Tulsequah Chief mines at Tulsequah yield gold, silver, copper, lead, and zinc, as does the Silver Standard at Hazelton. However, copper production is mainly from the Britannia and Copper Mountain mines, and gold from the C&boo Gold Quartz- 11 A 12 REPORT OF THE MINISTER OF MINES, 1954 Aurum, the Bralome and Pioneer, and the Nickel Plate mines. Copper output at the Britannia mine was increased, and Cowichan Copper Co. Ltd., a new producer, shipped crude ore from the Blue Grouse mine near Cowichan Lake. More than a dozen silver-lead-zinc mines were. in regular production, and ship- ments of crude ore or of customs mill concentrates were made from numerous other properties. Silver output increased in 1954, mainly because of increases in the Fort Steele and Skeena Mining Divisions. In the Skeena Mining Division the Torbrit com- pany operations were carried on throughout 1954, whereas in 1953 operations were suspended for several months. Lead and zinc output increased materially in the Golden, Fort Steele, and Revelstoke Mining Divisions. In the Golden Mining Division the Mineral King mine began production, and the output of the Silver Giant mine was increased. In other mining divisions, notably Nelson and Sloan, the output of zinc was reduced materially. Less iron ore was exported to Japan than in 1953. Tungsten output was con- siderably more than in 1953; however, the Red Rose mine, one of the two tungsten producers, was shut down before the end of 1954 because of marketing difficulties. A substantial increase in asbestos production and an increase in sulphur raised the value of industrial minerals materially above the 1953 value. The value of structural materials was moderately greater than in 1953. Coal output was somewhat less than in 1953. On Vancouver Island, coal produc- tion came from the Tsable River colliery and from several small operators in the Nanaimo area. Output in the Princeton area was materially greater than in 1953 and was sold mainly for use in the Granby steam power plant at Princeton. Strip-mined coal continues to make a substantial contribution to the output in the East Kootenay District. Strip mines are operated by The Crow’s Nest Pass Coal Company Limited near Michel and by Coleman Collieries Limited at Tent Mountain on the British Columbia-Alberta Boundary. Production of briquetted coal was begun at Michel in 1953. The markets for steam coal and for coke have long been very important to the East Kootenay coal-producers. Production of coal at Telkwa and in the Peace River area was about at the 1953 rate. Exploration for and development of metal deposits was directed mainly to copper, uranium, and iron. Exploration was carried on actively by the Cowichan Copper Com- pany, some interest was shown in copper occurrences in the Merritt area, and the explo- ration of the Granduc property indicated the existence of large copper orebodies. In addition to the more usual development and exploration at producing silver-lead-zinc mines, mention should be made of the adit begun at Beaverdell, 700 feet lower than the lowest workings of the Highland-Bell mine.