PROPOSED DONLIN CREEK GOLD MINE
CAREFUL PLANNING
The 2+ year permitting process is managed by regulatory agencies, whose job it is to protect the public interest. The Donlin Creek team plans to submit their permit applications in spring 2009. The purpose of this website is to provide a brief overview of the project and to begin a conversation with village residents about questions or concerns they may have about our proposal. The project is still evolving, but in this website we provide the most up-to-date information available.
AN INVITATION
Please take some time to read this project introduction and attend the Donlin Creek Project Roll Out meeting in your area this winter. We would like to hear back from you about any questions or concerns that you may have about our project proposal because we want to build a project that will enhance life in the YK region. Your active participation is an important part of the planning process.
HOW MUCH GOLD IS THERE AT DONLIN CREEK? HOW MANY YEARS WOULD THE MINE OPERATE?
The current estimate based on extensive exploration drilling is about 30 million ounces of in-place resources. Mining and milling operations employing 600 to 800 people would last about 20 years according to this estimate.
CHALLENGES FACING THE DONLIN PROJECT
Challenges for the project include the lack of existing infrastructure and power at the proposed mine site, and the enormous costs that providing these would require. Even if these engineering issues can be addressed, we still face the uncertainty that comes with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process. We anticipate that it will be 2+ years until we will know whether or not the project will be permitted by state and federal regulatory agencies. Only then would the company be able to make a decision to build a mine at Donlin.
WHAT WOULD THE PROPOSED DONLIN CREEK GOLD MINE LOOK LIKE?
Donlin Creek would be an open pit mine. At its largest, the pit would be about 2 miles long by 1 mile wide. Donlin would be a conventional truck and shovel mining operation, processing approximately 59,000 tons of ore per day. Assuming that all the needed permits and approvals are received, it would take about three years to construct the infrastructure and facilities required for this project.
A new airstrip and on-site housing would be built, along with a port on the Kuskokwim River, an on-site power generation plant, a wind turbine farm, conveyor systems, a mill, water treatment plant, truck shop, labs, sewage treatment plant, offices, warehouses, and on-site access roads.