If you enjoy reading upbeat news, I draw your attention to an article in the May 2006 issue of Alaska Economic Trends by Susan Erben of the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development that describes a mine training program being conducted in Southeast Alaska. In that program, 78 students, ranging in age from 18 to over 60, were afforded the basic training necessary to gain entry level jobs in Alaska's evolving mining industry.

With new major mines coming on line in the state, the demand for qualified employees over the past 25 years has increased from 500 to more than 2,000; and salaries have kept pace. According to Erben, "including overtime, people working in Alaska's mining industry made an average $72,176 in 2005." High metals prices, increased exploration activity and a favorable political climate should allow this growth to expand for as long as there is a need for cars, computers and galvanized steel.

The good news doesn't end there. Alaska is rapidly becoming a new power source (of the Btu variety). While we all follow developments in the oil patch and look for a gas pipeline, we should not turn a blind eye to the huge coal deposits from Chuitna to the North Slope that will be mines some day. Even geothermal and the wind are starting to emerge as feasible, cheap energy sources.

The University of Alaska Fairbanks has an active recruiting program for young men and women who are interested in careers in resource development. There are excellent scholarship opportunities for virtually anyone seeking to lighten the cost burden.

Opportunities in industry

Alaska's mining industry represents opportunities for all. Currently major mines are operating near Juneau, Fairbanks, Healy, Delta and Kotzebue. Soon new properties may come on line near McGrath, Nome and even Iliamna. The demand for employees ranges from secretaries to managers, as well as the obvious need for miners, mill workers, carpenters, electricians, mechanics, etc. The range of required skills is pervasive.

Furthermore, because some of these mines will emerge in remote locations, there is a need for collateral vocations such as school teachers and shopkeepers, cops and car dealers as well as engineers and technicians.

Erben's positive report about the mine training course in Juneau is only one of many such stories Alaskans may expect to hear over the next several decades. As our friends and relatives find themselves at risk of freezing in the dark, Alaskans can look forward to a prosperous future.

One other bright spot may emerge as well. There is a great deal of public data available with regard to mineral resources, but Alaska remains largely unexplored. There is more land available for mineral entry in Alaska than all of the rest of the country combined. The demand for new properties means that there will be a need for a new generation of prospectors. Those inspired to do so can still venture out onto the public domain and strike it rich.

And while the spotlight is focused on whether and when and where a gas pipeline should be built, it is fair to say that more and more Alaskans will be proud to say, "I have a friend who's a miner."