North of 60 Mining News - The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North

The fourth quarter in any given year, actually the period between Columbus Day and Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, is always an interesting period. Every eighth year (more frequently with one-term... — Updated 11/25/2020

The successful appointment of Justice Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court has possibly put an end for the time being to the national drift to the political left. Without disparaging any advocates for... — Updated 10/29/2020

Northern Dynasty Minerals first set its sights on Alaska's Pebble deposit in the 1990s. After acquiring the property in 2001, the company spent more than a decade and close to $1 billion proving it... — Updated 10/1/2020

N'tsi Tatay, more widely known as the Windy Craggy Project, is one of North America's largest resources of cobalt with excellent copper, zinc, gold, and silver grades hosted in an Upper Triassic... — Updated 9/26/2020

In what may be the world's grandest example of the Butterfly Effect, a microscopic organism in China has caused a hurricane of change for every person on Earth. For now, this change is... — Updated 9/26/2020

Alaska is different - it has moose hunters on hovercrafts, many large national parks, and certain unique federal laws. On March 26, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held that National Park... — Updated 9/25/2020

We all join in mourning the passing of one of the truly great Justices of the United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS). Not because of her bent, but because she personified the finest qualities of a... — Updated 9/24/2020

If anyone has not yet read Mike Satre’s excellent editorial in the October 2019 edition of the Alaska Miner magazine they should stop what they are doing right now and read what he has to say. Mik... — Updated 8/14/2020

Each July for the past four decades I have traveled to the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation’s Annual Institute for the purpose of maintaining my credentials as a lawyer and to keep abreast... — Updated 7/30/2020

Political differences, public demonstrations, a mortal pandemic, climate evolution, economic rebalancing plus a flood of other disasters have welled up over the past score of years to make our... — Updated 7/10/2020

If I were to write a letter to the President of the United States, it would probably go something like this: Dear Mr. President – Notwithstanding the aggressive Executive Orders that you have... — Updated 5/28/2020

Since statehood at least and, to a certain extent, since the earliest territorial days, Alaska has depended on the development of its resources for its prosperity. Fishing and mining were among the... — Updated 4/30/2020

In the current environment, it is difficult to avoid discussing the elephant in the room. Essentially, we need to understand how the COVID-19 pandemic will affect mining activities in Alaska in the... — Updated 3/26/2020

It is the very nature of the legislative process for the participants to endure conflict and controversy. Generally, the confrontations endemic to law-making begin when a citizen files for public... — Updated 2/28/2020

A priority of the Trump administration in 2016 was the reduction of the regulatory burden on America's businesses. Three years ago, the President signed Executive Order 13771, "Reducing Regulation... — Updated 1/30/2020

This author, in this column and elsewhere, has often taken the position that Alaska, especially in remote locations, is the safest, most environmentally-sound and worker-friendly mining location in... — Updated 1/10/2020

If you pay any attention to the popular press, it is difficult to avoid critical references to President Trump. He has become the effigy for everything from political division to global iconoclasm.... — Updated 11/27/2019

Alaska, like Canada to the east and Russia to the west, is well known for its elephantine mineral deposits. Recognition of those deposits surfaces regularly. Sometimes they are characterized by... — Updated 9/26/2019

It is no secret that much of the western United States was built on the back of natural resources found on federal land or within adjacent federal waters. Likewise, it is no secret that prior to... — Updated 9/6/2019

One of the highlights of my July each year is attending the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Institute because mining lawyers and landmen from across the continent gather to hear presentations of... — Updated 7/25/2019

One does not have to be a septuagenarian to recall how things were before Richard Nixon signed the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act into law. Whole industries used the commons for the disposal... — Updated 6/27/2019

It is difficult not to be optimistic about the future of the mining industry in Alaska these days. Although the industry is still No. 2 – as compared to oil and gas – it remains lucrative, safe... — Updated 5/30/2019

I know that it is a perennial hazard for those of us who follow the mining industry to be optimistic in the Spring every year; but, somehow, I don't seem to be able to contain myself this year. My... — Updated 5/24/2019

I don't really know how much it has cost John Sturgeon to go to the United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) twice in order to vindicate his right to use a hovercraft to go hunting on the Nation River,... — Updated 4/12/2019

Despite over four decades of working with the mining industry in Alaska, my travels rarely brought me to the northwest part of the state and my opportunities to interface with residents have been em... — Updated 2/28/2019