Detour around US89 landslide now fully open

The Arizona Dept. of Transportation reports that the newly paved, shorter US 89 detour route in northern Arizona is now fully open with no restrictions after ADOT completed fencing along the corridor to help prevent livestock from crossing the roadway.  [Right, ADOT photo of US 89 landslide right after its occurrence]

Until now, the Temporary US 89 (US 89T), opened with limited access on Aug. 29, was limited to only daytime use and speed restrictions were present in areas where the fencing had yet to be completed. The maximum speed limit for the corridor is now 55 mph.

The 44-mile-long US 89T route runs parallel to US 89 from The Gap to LeChee and is accessible from US 89, approximately 17 miles north of the US 160 junction (Tuba City exit). Previously a Navajo Nation roadway, US 89T will be maintained by ADOT while it is in use as a detour.

The US 89T project became necessary after a Feb. 20 landslide closed a section of US 89 between Bitter Springs and Page. Prior to paving US 89T, drivers headed to and from Page were forced to take a 115-mile-long alternate route along US 160 and State Route 98.
When traveling on US 89T, ADOT urges motorists to slow down, pay attention to their surroundings and be aware that this roadway on the Navajo Nation is prone to animal crossings, including horses, goats, cows and dogs.

US 89T is not part of the ultimate solution to repair US 89, which suffered a landslide that buckled pavement along the mountain slope in the Echo Cliffs area.

The projected $40 million repair is already on the fast track. Design on the repair began in late August and ADOT is meeting with potential contractors this fall. ADOT’s goal is to start construction by mid-2014, if extensive environmental and right-of-way clearances are finalized. 

To learn more about the landslide, the geotechnical survey and the ultimate solution for US 89, please visit the project’s web page at www.azdot.gov/us89, or call the ADOT Project Hotline at 855.712.8530, or email at Projects@azdot.gov.

[reprinted from the ADOT news release]

Remembering Walt Heinrichs

The geologic community is mourning the loss of Walt Heinrichs. A memorial service is scheduled for Sunday, October 27, at 1:30 pm.  [Photo credit, Arizona Geological Society]

Location: Grace Evangelical Covenant Church
Address: 9755 N. La Cholla Blvd. (between Overton and Lambert north of the bridge construction)

David Briggs published a commemoration to recognize Walt's contributions to understanding the region's geology, at http://tucsoncitizen.com/miningandyou/2013/10/19/discovery-of-pima-mission-copper-mine-pima-county-arizona/

There will be an obituary in the Arizona Daily Star this Sunday, Oct. 20.

Walt was cremated and his ashes will be scattered in Colorado with those of his first wife Jean.
If you have any photos you’d like to share with Fred, please send him at skierfwh@gmail.com

 Cori Hoag forwarded the text from the bio for his 1993 American Mining Hall of Fame Medal of Merit, below:

1993 MEDAL OF MERIT RECIPIENT, AMERICAN MINING HALL OF FAME

Walt Heinrichs was born in Superior, Arizona, and was raised in the mining camps of the western United States and in the Philippines. He graduated from the Colorado School of Mines in 1940 as a geological engineer with a geophysics major. After service in the U.S. Navy's early Gulf Coast off-shore aerial magnetometer experiments, he worked as a geophysicist with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and then with Newmont Mining Corporation.

Heinrichs is one of the pioneers of modem mining geophysical exploration and is credited with being a key member of the United Geophysical Company team under Herbert Hoover, Jr., that discovered the Pima mine using geophysics in an area long considered to be “non-mineral”.

In 1955, he was the co-recipient of the AIME's “Robert Peele Memorial Award” for his part in a paper related to the discovery of the Pima Mine. In that same year, he received the Colorado School of Mines first “Van Diest Award” for outstanding work during the first 15 years following graduation.

In 1958, he co-founded Heinrichs GEOEXploration Company, which he still owns and manages. GEOEX continues to provide geophysical consulting services in water, energy, minerals and environmental matters.

Copperstone gold operation ceasing operations

 American Bonanza Gold Corp. has put its Copperstone gold mine on a 'care and maintenance' status while it tries to find additional investment to bring the mine up to capacity.

Our sources indicate the mine's production reached only about 1/3 of the planned capacity at the same time that the price of gold has dropped 23%.   The price drop is making it difficult for gold companies to raise money.   [Right, aerial view of existing mine operations and targeted underground zones.  Credit, American Bonanza Gold Corp.]    The mine is north of Quartzite in La Paz County in western Arizona.

Walter Heinrichs, Jr.

We received just a brief note that Walter E. Heinrichs, Jr., one of Arizona's best known mining geologists, passed away on Thursday, October 10.

I had the pleasure of presenting the Arizona Geological Society's Honorary Lifetime Membership to Walt in 2008 [right].

Air quality permit issued for Holbrook potash mine

Arizona Department of Environmental Quality officials announced today that an air quality permit has been issued to American West Potash, the first permit to be issued for a large, proposed potash mining operation 30 miles southeast of Holbrook in Navajo County.  [Right, lease/ownership map of the Holbrook basin potash play.  AWP lands in purple on east side of Petrified Forest National Park in pale yellow]

The permit incorporates all applicable state and federal regulations and all appropriate pollution control requirements, monitoring and record keeping provisions to ensure protection of human health and the environment. While not required by air quality regulations, American West Potash addressed ADEQ’s request to work with the United States Forest Service and the National Park Service to document that the project would not adversely impact air quality at Petrified Forest National Park, which is located in close proximity to the project site.

American West Potash expects to begin construction of the mine in early 2015 and hopes to begin potash production in late 2017 or early 2018. The company anticipates creating  more than 750 full-time positions  and another nearly 200 jobs are expected to be created by outside businesses that will provide goods and services for mine operations.

“This mine could add nearly 1,000 much needed jobs to northeast Arizona’s economy and our air quality permit is highly protective of human health and the environment,” said ADEQ Director Henry Darwin. “This is an excellent example of how all parties can work together to protect the environment and grow the economy.”

American West Potash LLC, headquartered in Denver, Co., owns mineral claims covering an area of 32,000 acres in the Holbrook Basin. The company has estimated that as many as 2.5 billion tons of potash could be extracted in the next 60 years from the region. Potash contains potassium in water soluble form that is used in fertilizers throughout the world.

      

In addition to the air quality permit, American West Potash is expected to need an aquifer protection permit, an Arizona Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (AZPDES) permit  and possibly other permits from ADEQ before construction activities can begin.

[This post is the ADEQ news release]