LPG storage in Arizona salt caverns

We recently got an inquiry about how deep the salt caverns are in Arizona that hold liquid petroleum gas (LPG).

Steve Rauzi, Oil & Gas Administrator, says the man-made caverns in the Holbrook basin salt beds are generally 950-1050 feet deep, while those in the Luke salt beds are generally 1650-2750 feet deep.

The Holbrook salt deposit is getting a lot of attention recently due to the large potash deposit near the top of the salt beds, at an average depth of about 1,200 feet.

[right, schematic diagram of salt caverns used for natural gas storage. The situation for LPG storage is basically the same, although natural gas is usually under high pressure]

Deep-sea rock display at Arizona Capitol

The latest addition to the mall in front of the Arizona Territorial Capitol is a large block of hypabyssal basalt from the Pacific, that was donated to State Senator John Nelson, along with a suite of other exotic rocks dredged up by the Deep Sea Drilling Program. Sen. Nelson was intrigued about the origin of the rocks and how they related to rocks in Arizona.

He consulted with the Arizona Rock Products Association and with us at AZGS. We identified the rocks and pointed out where similar types occur around the state. The senator thought these associations offer a new perspective on the geologic history of Arizona that will be of interest especially to the many school children who visit the State Capitol.

ARPA generously donated the pedestal shown at right, along with a display case now on the 3rd floor of the Senate offices, which showcases the other ocean specimens, along with brief notes that AZGS assisted with, comparing them to Arizona rocks.

And where to find hypabyssal basalts in Arizona? Look in the Jerome region.

Copper price prediction of $8,000/tonne for 2012

A major global copper producer is projecting the price of copper to be around $8,000 per tonne (about $3.63 per pound) in 2012. Mineweb.com said Europe's number two copper producer KGHM made the call in an interview earlier this week.

Arizona produces about 2/3 of the copper used in the U.S.

The closing price of copper today was $3.46

Carlota copper mine to wind down production

QuadraFNX Mining is 'winding down' its Carlota copper mine near Globe, due to higher costs and lower expected production. The company says "the Carlota Mine is a heap leach -- SX-EW operation in the west end of the Miami-Globe mining district of east-central Arizona. Production of copper cathode at the Carlota Mine commenced in December 2008." It was expected to operate until 2020. Rumors are that the winding down operations could last a couple of years. [right, Carlota Mine. Credit McCook Boiler & Pump Co. Update 3-20-12: comments indicated that the original picture I posted was from Carlota, rather than McCook Boiler & Pump Co. as I understood. Later, it was stated the photo is not Carlota. So, I'm replacing it with one that I feel more confident really is Carlota. Credit, Quadra Mining]   [update 1-23-13:  another comment that the new photo is also not Carlota.  I replaced with one from Infomine described as Carlota.  Do we have it right yet?]

The company's outlook states:

"While oxide ore recovery rates were significantly enhanced with conveyor stacking, preliminary bulk sample leach tests indicate that sulphide material at Carlota, due to be mined in 2012, is unlikely to be economic at the Company’s long term copper price forecast. Therefore, the new life-of-mine plan will focus on mining readily available oxide ores followed by residual leaching."

"...the Company is continuing to evaluate the leaching of sulphides, the mining of the Edar
deposit on the Carlota property, as well as other strategic options. Based on performance to date, 2011 cathode production at Carlota is expected to be in the lower half of the previously revised range of 20 to 30 million pounds."

Gila Bend - solar capital of the world?

"Gila Bend has set a world record in utility scale solar plant construction….Right now, we can't build solar power faster anywhere in the world,” says First Solar Vice President Jim Woodruff.

According to US Dept. of Energy, two solar companies, First Solar's Paloma and Cotton Center have power plants under construction that should deliver enough power to the Arizona Public Service Co. (APS) power grid by 2012 to supply about 9,000 homes. Two other plants have filed applications with the town, "with the possibility of 10-15 more viable plants in the pipeline" which could make Gila Bend the solar power capital of the world. [right, Paloma and Cotton Center solar plants. Credit town of Gila Bend]

DOE attributes the towns success first to the establishment of a "Solar Field Overlay Zone" (SFOZ), which greatly reduced the complications for solar companies to develop the sun-soaked fields located within the town. Secondly, they say town officials expedite the speed at which solar companies’ construction plans can get approved. "Processes that usually take at least a year, and often several years, can now go through public hearings, citizen review sessions, planning and zoning commissions hearings, publication in a newspaper, and council approval in as little as four weeks."

Water info syndication web site - WaterSISWEB

At the NSF EarthCube charrette a couple weeks ago, I had a chance to see a brief demo by Kaveh Madani of a sophisticated community-driven website using SISWEBs - Scientific Information Syndication WEBsiteS. One of the applications of this is for the water community.

WaterSISWEB is a SISWEBS (Scientific Information Syndication WEBsiteS) family website, dedicated to Water Resources. This SISWEB is a place for Water Resources professionals to share information. Scientists, researchers, students, and industry professionals can use this free community service to find what is new and popular in the Water Resources area and share, store, organize, and search bookmarks of web pages in this area.

I like the aggregator tool that pulls in the latest news/posts on water-related topics.

Geology field camp attendance is growing

The number of students reported to be taking geology field camp has increased 37% in the past five years, 53% in the past 10 years, and is up 10% over 2010, according to the latest Geoscience Currents fact sheet from AGI. In 2011, attendance in geology field camps totaled 2,525 students.

The report combines data from continuing field camps and camps newly added to the database. However, the report notes that "A total of 94 fi eld camps have consistently
reported field camp attendance data for the past five years (2007-2011), and 76 fi eld camps have consistently reported attendance data for the past 10 years (2002-2011)." The attendance increase percentages above are attributed to these sources.

I'm frankly surprised at the strength of this growth. There is a perception among many of us that geoscience students are turning away from field work to focus on computer-based work in the office. But the old adage that the best geologists are the ones who have seen the most rocks, may still have some cachet.

Supporters of copper mine fill public hearing

Supporters of the proposed Rosemont Copper mine showed up in force, greatly outnumbering the opponents, at the first public hearing on the Draft EIS released by the US Forest Service yesterday in Tucson. [right, line of sight view from SR8. Credit, Rosemont Copper mine plan of operations]

This caught many observers by surprise (myself included). Mine opponents have been vociferous and backed by high-profile opposition from Pima County, some news media, and key political leaders. The expectation was that Save the Scenic Santa Ritas would rally their members to show up to speak out against the mine at this first meeting because it would be well covered by the news media.

Mine supporters seem to have become better organized and coordinated in recent months. Representatives from Tucson's business community attended last week's Arizona Mining Alliance luncheon meeting in Tucson last week to express their support for the mine, touting the economic benefits and arguing that fears of environmental impacts were dramatically overstated.

AZ Daily Star reporter Tony Davis this morning described the efforts by Rosemont Copper and allies to rally proponents.

Searching the geothermal data catalog

The State Geological Surveys across the country are in full production mode, compiling and digitizing data as part of the AZGS-led effort to deploy the National Geothermal Data System nationwide and populate it with data needed for geothermal exploration and development. There are over 34,000 records in the online catalog, growing from only 4,000 in April.

We tested our preliminary user access capabilities at the GSA annual meeting in Minneapolis in October, prior to rolling out a formal launch at the Geothermal Resources Council annual meeting in San Diego to great reviews a couple weeks later.

Our distributed data system is based on internationally accepted open-source OGC (Open Geospatial Consortium) and ISO standards.

We realize that many of NGDS users use ESRI's ArcMap GIS software, so we developed an application for searching the catalog directly through ESRI's ArcMap. This application can access OGC Catalog Services for the Web (CSW) through http://catalog.usgin.org/, http://portal.onegeology.org/ and http://geo.data.gov/ . The application can search and list the available services using key words. It can also add Web Map Services (WMS) directly into ArcMap. [right, screen shot of catalog search for Heat Flow data]

The application is available for free on the USGIN Repository at http://repository.usgin.org/uri_gin/usgin/dlio/392. A tutorial on installing and using the application is available on the Tutorials site at http://usgin.org/content/sgd-csw-client-arcmap.

Passport's Holbrook basin potash resource report available online

The NI-43-101 Technical Report on Exploration Potential on Passport Potash's potash holdings in the Holbrook basin is available for viewing or download at the SEDAR.com site. You need to identify the company name, and select "Junior Natural Resources - Mining" from the Industry Group category, and "Technical Report NI-43-101" in Document Type.

The report was prepared by SRK Consultants in Tucson.

Thanks to Steve D. for forwarding the link to the report.

Arizona one of most favorable locations for potash

An interview with Dundee Capital Markets Vice President and Senior Financial Analyst Richard Kelertas quotes him as saying the most favorable regions for potash companies right now are Saskatchewan, Utah, Arizona, and Ethiopia. As I read the interview, the shallow depth of the Holbrook basin deposit would seem to be one of the more important factors, along with proximity to U.S. markets.

He expects an average price in 2012 $505/t, rising to $520/t average price in 2013. The peak price in 2013 was revised downward from $700-725 to around $625-$650/t.

Concerns were raised about potential flooding of existing deep shaft mines (ie, around 2,200 meters) such as in Saskatchewan and Russia, saying it may only be a matter of time for some of them. Shut downs of existing mines could crimp global supplies, despite slower than expected global recovery from the recession.

Profile of ADWR's Chief Engineer Michael Johnson

ADWR's Chief Engineer and Assistant Director Michael Johnson is profiled in ASU's Full Circle, the alumni magazine of the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering. [right, photo credit ASU]

In addition to the engineering duties and administration of the use-permit system for surface water and groundwater, his division oversees dam safety, flood warning and floodplain management operations.

The division also aids state courts in adjudicating the nature, extent and priority of more than 96.000 water-rights claims filed within the Gila River and Little Colorado River systems and sources.

He’s also involved in water management at the federal level. Johnson is a member of a national review board that advises the Federal Emergency Management Agency on dam safety and security priorities. He was recently elected to the board of directors of the Association of State Dam Safety Officials. The nonprofit organization supports dam safety efforts and works to raise public awareness of dam safety issues.

Major real estate development on edge of Grand Canyon park

The debate over uranium mining in northern Arizona has been getting most of the attention but a major real estate development on the edge of Grand Canyon National Park just got approval from the town of Tusayan over objections of the Park and others. Stilo Group, an Italian developer, owns most of the private lands in the area. Their plans include:

The 65 Ha Kotzin Ranch property is planned for a mix of various residential (single-family, apartments, condominiums and manufactured housing, etc.), commercial (retail, service, a recreational vehicle park, visitor services, etc.) and community development (houses of worship, government services, etc.).

The 78 Ha TenX Ranch, located just east of Tusayan, is planned for a wide range of visitor services that will include lodging, a retail village, an Insight educational campus, a Native American Cultural Center, a dude ranch and spa and vacation residential uses.

Tusayan is only about 58 Ha, so the new developments would nearly quadruple that.

A recent city council hearing on the proposal was contentious. The Grand Canyon News says

Grand Canyon National Park Superintendent David Uberuaga addressed the Council and said the plan, which is also opposed by the Sierra Club, and the Havasupai Tribal Council, could place a great burden on the park.

"Resources in this area are in greatest jeopardy from depletions and contamination to ground water, seeps, and springs, as well as alterations to cave and kart features," he said. "Not only are these resources the life blood of the communities, but to our native plant and wildlife as well."

BLM solar roadmap for Arizona

The Dept. of Interior released the updated "roadmap for solar energy development" in 6 southwestern states including Arizona: the Supplement to the Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact statement for Solar Energy Development (Solar PEIS). The Supplemental solar program will incorporate other, state-based planning efforts to establish additional solar energy zones including the Arizona Restoration Energy Design Program.

BLM will hold one of four regional public hearings in Phoenix, on Thursday, December 1, 2011 at 7:00 PM: Sheraton Crescent Hotel, 2620 West Dunlap Avenue, Phoenix, 85021

First public hearing on Rosemont Copper draft EIS

The first public hearing by the US Forest Service on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed Rosemont Copper mine will be held Saturday afternoon (Nov. 12) and both sides are calling for their supporters to show up to make their case.

The hearing will be 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., at Palo Verde High School, 1302 S. Avenida Vega, Tucson, AZ.

The DEIS is available online at www.RosemontEIS.us. "The Coronado National Forest is planning to host the following public meetings to share information about and take comments on the DEIS. Each meeting will include both informational sessions and comment sessions. Oral statements made during the comment session will be recorded. Written comments will also be taken at the meetings. Citizens do not need to be present at any meetings to comment on the DEIS."

The battle is being played out in the news media as a choice between economy and the environment. [right, Rosemont Copper's estimate of economic benefits of the mine]

Opponents of the mine have gathered under the banner of Save the Scenic Santa Ritas.

USGS releases thousands more digital historical topos

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has released another 13,688 historical topographic maps covering California from its Historical Topographic Map Collection. Arizona is scheduled to be completed this Fall. According to a recent announcement:

Nearly 124,000 high resolution scans of the more than 200,000 historical USGS topographic maps, some dating as far back as 1884, are now available online. The Historical Topographic Map Collection includes published U.S. maps of all scales and editions, and are offered as a georeferenced digital download or as a scanned print from the USGS Store.

Historical maps are offered to the public at no cost in GeoPDF format or as a printed copy for $15 plus a $5 handling charge from the USGS Store and can be used in conjunction with the new USGS digital topographic map, the US Topo. Check the website for continuous updates: http://nationalmap.gov/historical

The project is part of the USGS National Geospatial Program (NGP).

Town Hall on Arizona energy

We are about to get started with the second day of the Arizona Town Hall on Energy, being held at the Grand Canyon. In the background report prepared for us, we were amazed to learn that Arizonans spent $17.6 billion on energy in 2006, including $9.3 billion on gasoline and jet fuel, and $5 billion for electricity. About $12 billion, or 68% of the total expenditures, went out of state to pay for imports of fuels.


Ref: Arizona's Energy Future, Arizona Town Hall, Chapter 1: Introduction, by Clark A. Miller and Sharlissa Moore.

AZ SciTech Festival

The new web site is up for the first Arizona SciTech Festival. The 6-week long series of events begins in February 2012 in conjunction with the Arizona Centennial. Hundred of organizations, including AZGS, are participating.

Bobdownsite - new mineral named after UA geology prof

A newly discovered phosphate mineral has been named after Bob Downs, a professor of geology at the University of Arizona, and director of the UA Mineral Museum. [right, credit UA]

The published announcement describes Bobdownsite from the Yukon as "tabular, colorless, and transparent, with a white streak and vitreous luster. It is brittle, with a Mohs hardness of ~5; no cleavage, parting, or macroscopic twinning is observed. The fracture is uneven and subconchoidal. The measured and calculated densities are 3.14 and 3.16 g/cm3, respectively. Bobdownsite is insoluble in water, acetone, or hydrochloric acid."

Ref: BOBDOWNSITE, A NEW MINERAL SPECIES FROM BIG FISH RIVER, YUKON, CANADA, AND ITS STRUCTURAL RELATIONSHIP WITH WHITLOCKITE-TYPE COMPOUNDS, by Kimberly T. Tait, Madison C. Barkley, Richard M. Thompson, Marcus J. Origlieri, Stanley H. Evans, Charles T. Prewitt, and Hexiong Yang, The Canadian Mineralogist, 2011;49 1065-1078
http://www.canmin.org/cgi/content/abstract/49/4/1065

Frye Award photos from GSA

We just got photos from the Geological Society of America award ceremony in Minneapolis, where AZGS geologist Joe Cook received the John C. Frye Award for best environmental geology publication as the lead author on an AZGS-published report on Quaternary geology along the San Pedro River, which is being used for water rights adjudication.

Below, Joe is congratulated by GSA President John
Geissman at the Presidential Award Ceremonies. Right, Joe in center is flanked on the left by Jack Hess, GSA Executive Director, Annual Meeting Chair Harvey Thorliefson, and on the right by me and GSA President John Geissman.


Ref: Mapping of Holocene River Alluvium along the San Pedro River, Aravaipa Creek, and Babocomari River, Southeastern Arizona, by Joseph P. Cook, Ann Youberg, Philip A. Pearthree, Jill A. Onken, Bryan J. MacFarlane, David E. Haddad, Erica R. Bigio, Andrew L. Kowler, 2009, Arizona Geological Survey Digital Map DM-RM-1