Geological Background
“Mining built The Kootenay-Boundary Region of British Columbia. Over 40 Billion dollars of metal has come from the region and not only built towns but also great companies such as Cominco and Placer. The Region has a mild temperate climate, great infrastructure (including Teck Cominco’s world-leading zinc-lead smelter), and great geology. The Region is well-developed with a strong highway and forest road network, rail lines, hydro-electric power generation capacity, and a highly skilled workforce. The potential exists to produce another 40 Billion dollars in metals…”
“Bob Thompson of the Geological Survey of Canada said, “The South has the infrastructure, your exploration dollar goes ten times further, you can mine much lower grade and much lower tonnage because the infrastructure is here. The most economically viable piece of country in Western Canada is adjacent to the 49th parallel. This is an area of high economic potential and it hasn’t had any money spent on it for a long time. There has not been nearly enough activity and maybe it is time to generate something new here.” “Still true today!”
(Excerpt from Nelson Chamber of Mines website)