Zoellner uranium talk at AGS meeting

Author and Tucson native, Tom Zoellner, will give a lecture titled "Uranium Since the Middle Ages and the Atomic Legacy of the West" at 8:00 PM on Tuesday, September 1 at the Sheraton Four Points Hotel on the southeast corner of Campbell and Speedway. This lecture is based on his recent book Uranium, War, Energy and the Rock that Reshaped the World, published by Viking Penguin.

Antigone Books on 4th St. has arranged for a book signing before and after the lecture. He will also be signing copies of "The Heartless Stone: a Journey through the world of diamonds, deceit and desire."

Mr. Zoellner has discussed his books on numerous national TV shows, including The Daily Show.

The lecture will be part of a dinner meeting of the Arizona Geological Society. There is no cost to attend the talk, but if you wish to join the Society for dinner, reservations must be made at (520) 663-5295 before August 28. The cost for dinner for non-members is $27.

Mr. Zoellner will be signing books from 6 to 7 PM and after 9 PM.

A few reviews of Mr. Zoellner's recent books:

"Part history and part travel narrative, the book presents the atomic age not through its scientists or grand strategists, but through its raw material..." - New York Times

"Zoellner vividly conveys both the potential benefits and the harm that uranium holds for human civilization...Policymakers and citizens alike need to read Uranium." - The Washington Post

"In this fine piece of journalism, Zoellner does for uranium what he did for diamonds in The Heartless Stone­he delves into the complex science, politics and history of this radioactive mineral, which presents the best and worst of mankind." - ­Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Tom Zoellner has written a stunning book about he calls the "apocalyptic pull of uranium." His reportage reads like a detective story with a cast of characters ranging from H.G. Wells to Robert Oppenheimer to A. Q. Khan. His writing is at once lyrical, historically informative and deeply investigative. Zoellner's engrossing history of uranium is a formidable achievement."
­Kai Bird, co-author of American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, and winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Biography in 2006

[this post is taken from the announcement by Bob Kamilli, Program Chair for AGS]

Freeport's plans to restart Colorado Climax moly mine still on hold

Phoenix-based Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold's plans are still on hold for reopening their Climax molybdenum mine in Colorado [right. Credit Ken Lund, Creative Commons]. Fred Menzer, the company's VP for Colorado operations told a meeting of the Summit County Rotary Club that Freeport has spent $200 million since announcing plans two years ago to re-open the mine, but another $350 million is needed to bring that to fruitionm, as reported in the Summit Daily News.

The Climax Mine is regarded as one of the premier moly deposits in the world but the price drop of last year from $30 to $8 per pound brought progress to a halt, although moly prices are now in the $8 - 14 per pound range.

Digging in to Bisbee's mining heritage

The Bisbee Mining & Historical Museum's new permanent exhibit, “Digging In: Bisbee’s Mineral Heritage,” received the Governor’s Award for Arizona Preservation from the Arizona Office of Tourism and the Award of Merit for Leadership in History from the American Association of State & Local History, according to the Sierra Vista Herald. The new exhibit was created by the Smithsonian Institution.

Bisbee and Sierra Vista residents get free admission during August.

Psst, wanna buy Kartchner Caverns?

While the national news media is mostly talking about Arizona considering selling off its state buildings, including the Capitol, there is a report that Kartchner Caverns State Park is also on the list, with a reputed sale price of $10.5 million. The Arizona Republic says there are 32 properties on the list and identify 10 of them, including prisons, hospitals, and office buildings but they say nothing specifically about Kartchner Caverns. [right, credit Arizona State Parks]

Bob Casavant, a geologist and chief science advisor in State Parks, was in Texas last week, meeting with world cave experts. He reports that Kartchner is considered the world leader in management of a living cave system.

Where are all the economic geologists?

An important article in the new issue of GSA Today asks the critical question, "Could we be facing the collapse of the science that underpins the long-term supply and stewardship of the mineral resources on which our nation depends?"

The answer, from authors Murray Hitzman, John Dilles, Mark Barton (Univ. Arizona), and Maeve Boland, is a pretty compelling, 'yes' with concerns that we are facing an impending national crisis.

[right, raw material consumption has grown even as the number of economic geology as a percentage of geoscience faculty has declined. Credit, GSA Today]

They conclude that there "There is no consensus among federal and state agencies, the
mining industry, and the U.S. academic community regarding the importance of economic geology to future U.S. competitiveness," and call for a national dialogue among all the parties to develop a new strategy.

Sedona UFO traffic report

UFO reports from Sedona aren't as rare as you might expect. But this spinning object is certainly different than others I've seen photographed. It looks like some kind of computer icon that spins while you wait for something to download.

EIS to start on giant solar energy plant near Buckeye

The BLM is starting the EIS process for a solar power center near Buckeye, west of Phoenix. The 375-megawatt facility will cover 4,000 acres with collectors within a 14,000 acre block.

This is one of the first, if not the first full review of a major solar energy plant on public lands and I have to wonder how it will fare.

The block of land abuts the Sonoran Desert Monument to the south and other protected lands lie just west.

Will opposition surface to an industrial power plant covering 6 square miles? Will the promise of non-fossil fuel renewable energy quell any concerns about land and water use in the area?

The number of solar plant applications and amount of land proposed across Arizona and the West are impressive. BLM has recognized the potential for conflicts over millions of acres proposed for development.

This process deserves to be watched closely as a harbinger of how large-scale renewable energy projects will fare.

Augusta Resources to issue $25 million in stock to fund Rosemont mine

Augusta Resources announced that they entered into an underwriting agreement for the issuance of 12,380,000 common shares at a price of Cdn$2.02 per common share for gross proceeds of Cdn$25,007,600. The funds will be used in developing the Rosemont Copper mine in the Santa Rita Mountains, south of Tucson.

The US Forest Service is conducting an EIS for use of federal lands adjacent to the mine.

Nano-diamonds support theory that comet killed the mammoths

Arizona geologist Allan West has been forwarding a theory for the past four years that a giant comet struck Canada 12,900 years ago, wiping out many Ice Age megafauna and ushering in a 1,000 year global cooling period. There are lots of skeptics.

However, a new study, co-authored by West, came out in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences last week, with evidence of microscopic ("nano") diamonds on Santa Rosa Island off the coast of California, that the authors call a smoking gun proving the idea that a massive impact, possibly into the Hudson Bay region, covered the continent with a cloud of super-hot ejecta.

The authors state that this form of nanodiamond, lonsdaleite, "is known on Earth only in meteorites and impact craters, and its presence strongly supports a cosmic impact event."

They note that "These shock-synthesized diamonds are also associated with proxies indicating major biomass burning (charcoal, carbon spherules, and soot). The only previously known co-occurrence of nanodiamonds, soot, and extinction is the Cretaceous-Tertiary (K/T) impact layer" which is blamed for the end of the dinosaurs.

Ref: Shock-synthesized hexagonal diamonds in Younger Dryas boundary sediments, Published online before print July 20, 2009, doi: 10.1073/pnas.0906374106

Grand Canyon is #1 natural tourist spot in Arizona

The Grand Canyon is once again the top natural attraction for tourists in Arizona according to statistics released today by the Arizona Office of Tourism for 2008. A number of other geological wonders show up in the list of the top 20 natural sites most visited. Attendance was almost 4.5 million last year.

Could CCS double costs of electricity?

A Harvard study estimates the cost of electricity could double or more in the short term because of the cost of carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS). With maturing of the technologies, those costs could drop to a 22-50% increase. The study, "Realistic Costs of Carbon Capture," estimates the cost of coal-generated electricity would go up an average of 10 cents per kilowatt-hour, compared to a national average of 9 cents today. [right, APS' Cholla coal-fired power plant, where a CO2 sequestration test is about to begin]

A lot of folks have warned that the costs would be huge. One of my colleagues, from a big energy-producing state, half-jokingly urged Harvard to carry out more such studies, on the broader topic of “Realities of Energy, Water, Environmental Impact and Economics.“

He told me, "It just might sober a lot of folks up to the realities of the morning after."

Cochise coal ash pond hazards assessed

The seven coal ash ponds at the Willcox area's Apache Generating Station [right, Google Earth], operated by Arizona Electric Power Cooperative, are on the list of 44 "high hazard potential" waste sites from coal-fired power plants released by EPA earlier this month. But in an interview with the Benson News-Sun, company officials noted that EPA itself says "A high hazard potential rating is not related to the stability of those impoundments, but to the potential for harm should the impoundment fail." AEPCO said the facilities are inspected daily, weekly, and monthly, as well as annually by the ADWR Dam Safety & Flood Mitigation division.

EPA is carrying out safety reviews of all the ponds nationwide, with the results to be made public when completed, probably around the end of the year.

Arizona has a second coal ash pond facility at near Joseph City in the northeast part of the state.

Subflow on the San Pedro River

The Arizona Dept. of Water Resources has released a 1,300 page report on subflow zones along the San Pedro River as part of a legal adjudication of water rights. Subflow is that part of the river that flows in the subsurface. Delineation of the subflow will determine who has rights to groundwater. The court defined subflow as occurring in the Holocene floodplain alluvium.

The AZGS did the geologic mapping of Holocene-aged units along the river and tributary valleys for the ADWR study. Those 1:24,000-scale maps will probably be released publicly next week.

The Camp Verde Bugle did as nice review as I've read of the issues on the San Pedro as a possible prelude to simlar adjudication battles on the Verde River.

Rosemont Copper buys haul trucks for mine

Augusta Resources announced last week the signing of an agreement for the purchase of 23, 250-ton Caterpillar 793F haulage trucks [right, credit Caterpillar Corp] for the Rosemont Copper mine at a cost of $82.2 million from Empire Southwest, a Caterpillar dealership headquartered in Mesa, Arizona. The trucks are due to be delivered in late 2010 and early 2011. The Rosemont mine is undergoing an EIS by the US Forest Service, expected to be completed in 2010.

More potash exploration in Holbrook basin

American Potash LLC, a JV of Confederation Minerals and Magna Resources, announced that

they received from the Arizona State Land Department the approval of five mineral exploration permits totaling 3,200 acres and the request for plan of operations for eight additional mineral exploration permits totaling 3,222.93 acres. These, together with the pending Bureau of Land Management ("BLM") potassium prospecting permits total 9,690 acres of land available to American Potash for drill testing in Arizona. Relative to the BLM potassium prospecting permits, American Potash has received a letter of request from the BLM for exploration program proposals, the precursor to final permit approval.

[right, potash isopach map, AZGS 2008]

Freed geo student offers thanks to supporters

Mark Trees, one of the 3 students who returned from Brazil yesterday, shared this thank-you to everyone who spoke out and otherwise supported their efforts to leave the country after being arrested for sediment sampling without the required permits.

Hello Everyone,

As one of the aforementioned students, I would like to add my and my family's sincere gratitude to everyone who took part in the call to our defense and our safe return home. Knowing that we had so many folks following the progress of our case proved helpful at times when we still did not know what the future had in store for us while we were held in Brazil. Now that all of us are home safely, we can focus on reconnecting with family, friends and colleagues, and
look forward to a resolution in the Brazilian legal system. We can only hope
for a quick decision in our favor and to get this ordeal behind us for good.

Aloha,

Mark Trees

National Geographic: Is Phoenix in danger of "Collapse"?

A National Geographic film crew is working in the Phoenix area on a documentary based on Jared Diamond's best-selling book, "Collapse." The book examines the factors that led to the collapse of cities and civilizations through history.

AZGS geologist Todd Shipman took the crew to film Earth fissures in the greater Phoenix basin last week as indicators of basin subsidence resulting from overpumping of groundwater.

Diamond lists water management as one of 8 factors that historically led to collapse of societies.

Geoscience students returning from Brazil; charges still pending

University of Arizona geoscience professor Andy Cohen sent out a note this afternoon, reporting that the UA geology graduate students arrested in Brazil while doing field work with Brazilian university researchers, were allowed to return to the U.S. last night, but may have to go back to resolve the criminal charges filed against them. They were arrested almost exactly one month ago [right, one of the freed UA grad students, Matthew McBGlue -right, with assistant - drilling in Argentina on similar research to that done in Brazil. Credit, Andy Cohen]. Andy's email in full is below:

Dear Colleagues,
I am writing to update you on the situation about the US and Brazilian students arrested while doing field work in the Pantanal region of Brazil. Early this past week a ruling was made in the Brazilian Federal court allowing the American students to get their passports back and last night they all left Brazil to return home. The issue is not completely resolved since by Brazilian law they may yet have to return to Brazil to answer questions, although a legal request was also made to the court to allow them to answer questions from their homes in the US. Formal charges have not yet been filed by the police to the court, and we remain hopeful that eventually the original charges will be dropped, but will have to wait for this for the time being.

In the meantime I am extremely grateful for the outpouring of support from all of you in your signing the petition for the students and your many letters of concern. The response to the petition was overwhelming-I had received over 400 signatures by the time I had to submit the petition to the court and the petition received attention in the largest circulation daily newspaper in Brazil. That document was attached to various other support letters and affidavits to the court and I am certain it will prove helpful in convincing the court of the nature of the student's activities and their acting in good faith regarding necessary permits and visas at the time of their arrest.

Andrew S. Cohen
Department of Geosciences
University of Arizona

Clashes at Grijalva's hearing on uranium mining

This week's Congressional hearing on uranium mining, called by committee chair Rep. Raul Grijalva of Tucson, may be indicative of the rising debate over uranium mining in northern Arizona. I get the sense that this is turning into one of the environmental flash points nationwide.

Utah Congressman Rob Bishop, the ranking Republican on the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, started the hearing off by saying Monday's decision by Interior Secretary Salazar to put 1 million acres off-limits to new mining claims, is "tyranny" by the Obama administration. Salt Lake City's Deseret News further quotes him as saying, "The secretary of the Interior unilaterally and arbitrarily made a multiyear decision for a moratorium without input, without science and obviously without understanding." [right, uranium exploration drill rig from last year. Credit, Vane Minerals]

A Nevada university professor is quoted as saying that he found high levels of uranium in a canyon creek which he claimed were the result of mining more than a decade ago. AZ Dept. of Mining and Mineral Resources director Dr. Madan Singh challenged that, saying the concentrations are from erosion of the naturally-occurring uranium-bearing deposits in the region.

Tucson-based uranium geologist Dr. Karen Wenrich, argued that it's not appropriate to compare modern mining methods with out-of-date techniques used decades ago.

Copper prices hit 9-month high

It was a good day for copper yesterday. U.S. copper prices closed at $2.5255 for September contracts, a 9-month high, the first time they went over $2.5o since October, and double the price at the low back in December [right Bloomberg chart from Mineweb.com].

What's driving this at least in part, according to an analyst at Mineweb.com, are record imports by China for the fifth straight month.

BHP Billiton however, says China has about refilled its inventory and major economies in the rest of the world are starting to refill theirs.

Arizona produces about 60% of the U.S. demand for copper, so global production, demand, and prices are an important factor in the local economy and U.S. supply.