EASTERN OREGON
MINING ASSOCIATION
FEBRUARY 2025
VOLUME 425
President……………………………………..Ken Alexander…….alxk@ortelco.net ……541-446-3413
Vice-President……………………………..Dan Johnson……………………………………..1-503-510-3281
Director of Governmental Affairs……….Terry Drever Gee……………………… 541-523-6228
Editor…………………………….. Jan Alexander………. alx@ortelco.net….541-446-3413
Mineral Policy Director……………….Jan Alexander………. alx@ortelco.net….541-446-3413
PLEASE REMEMBER TO PAY YOUR EOMA DUES FOR THE YEAR 2025
JANUARY IS THE MONTH EOMA COLLECTS DUES FOR THE YEAR
You can send your dues to: EOMA, PO Box 932, Baker City, OR 97814. Or you can pay at the meeting. You can also sign up and pay with a credit card on our website: EOMA.US
FEBRUARY 7th , 2025 MEETING AT ELK CREEK ENTERPRISES
The EOMA monthly meeting is at the Elk Creek Enterprises saw shop located at 890 Elm Street in Baker City. The Executive Board Meeting starts at 6:00 PM and the General Meeting follows at 6:30 PM. Everyone is welcome to attend these meetings. February is the month we send out ballots for the March election. You need to be a paid up member for your vote to count. As usual, someone will be winning a 1 oz. silver medallion at the end of the meeting.
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Good news, at least for the moment! It looks as if the Owyhee Canyonlands will not be put into a National Monument before President Biden leaves office. Senator Wyden’s legislation, the Owyhee Act, to put over a million acres into Wilderness, and other special management categories, passed the Senate, but the bill stalled in the House of Representatives. Senator Wyden and Representative Bentz said in a joint statement it would be a priority for them both to get something passed by Congress in 2025.
Hopefully, with the new administration coming on board, the Owyhee Canyonlands National Monument and other such proposed land grabs in Oregon and other Western States, will be at least investigated for mineral potentials before these millions of acres are completely and indiscriminately locked away from reasonable uses. Protection of all of our natural resources should be considered in a balanced manner and not arbitrarily made inaccessible.
EOMA ELECTIONS ARE COMING UP MARCH 7, 2025
EOMA Executive Committee members serve one-year terms. Board of Directors members serve two-year terms, with half the Board members running for election alternate years. You must be a paid-up member to vote. A ballot is included in this newsletter for those who are unable to attend the March meeting. Be sure your ballot is returned to EOMA, PO Box 932, Baker City OR 97814 before the March 7th meeting.
MINE SAFETY TRAINING IN MARCH AND APRIL-Jan Alexander
Trent Hahn will be our MSHA instructor for one more year. Classes will cost $60 per day of instruction. Classes will be held at the Elk Creek Enterprises saw shop located at 890 Elm Street in Baker City. We begin at 8:00AM and are in class until 4:00PM or 5:00PM.
Annual Refresher on March 13, 2025.
New Miner will begin on Tuesday March 11 and finish on March 13. If enough people need their last day of underground, that will be on Friday the 14th.
Annual Refresher on Tuesday April 29th.
Please call Jan Alexander at 541-446-3413 if you plan to attend any of these training sessions.
DEQ TO DELIST NORTH FORK BURNT RIVER SO IT IS AVAILABLE FOR SUCTION DREDGE MINING THIS SUMMER-Jan Alexander
Lesley Merrick from DEQ looked into the 303(d) listing for the North Fork Burnt River and told me the following.
Hi Jan,
Thanks for the conversation yesterday. After the additional information you provided, I went back and looked at the sediment 303(d) listings for North Fork Burnt River (Assessment Unit IDs – OR_SR_1705020201_05_102800 and OR_SR_1705020201_05_102802). It appears that you are correct, the sediment listing for these assessment units are based an error in the crosswalk of the old 303(d) segments to the new AU framework in 2020.
Good news, we are in the final stages of preparing the 2024 Integrated Report for submittal to EPA, and because they are errors, we will include these delisting in the submittal. Thank you for bringing this error to our attention.
Thus, the North Fork Burnt River from the headwaters to the dam, and the Burnt River from the dam to Durkee are available for suction dredging.
COUNTY FEES FOR LOCATING CLAIMS
Baker County charges $81.50 for a one-page location notice with two copies. Grant County charges $84. The size of the claim does not. matter.
A copy of the location notice and a map must be sent to BLM within 60 days of the date when the claim was located on the ground.
WHAT DOES IT COST TO FILE A NEW MINING CLAIM WITH BLM?-Jan Alexander
20 acre claim: $274
40 acre claim: $474
60 acre claim: $674
80 acre claim: $874
100 acre claim: $1074
120 acre claim $1,274
140 acre claim: $1,474
160 acre claim: $1,674
POWDER MINING PROJECTS RECORD OF DECISION-Sid Johnson, AEMA
Sid contacted mining consultants who work on National Forests throughout the west to see if any other Forests, besides the Wallowa-Whitman, had interpreted the Rosemont Decision to mean only placer exploration Plans of Operation could be approved.
Sid wrote the following: Just before our Dec. 19 meeting, I followed up with a member of ours who does consulting work with a number of companies in Arizona, some of which are navigating the Forest Service permitting process. He has not heard of any of the national forests or their ranger districts down there interpreting or applying the Rosemont decision in the way Region 6 is. Also, the Stibnite project over in Idaho doesn’t seem to be receiving that kind of treatment from the Forest Service, despite the high profile and heavy opposition from NGOs. That part of Idaho is in Forest Service’s Region 4.
Region 6 is clearly wrong in denying approval of mining plans without the miner proving validity.
MINERS DO NOT NEED SPECIAL USE PERMITS IF THEY HAVE AN APPROVED PLAN OF OPERATION-Jan Alexander
BLM geologist, Terry S. Maley talks about special use permits on page 714-715 of his book, Mineral Law, Sixth Edition. Maley states, “Special Use Permits do not apply” He discusses the Montana District Court decision in U.S. vs Craig-82-8-H. He also discusses the Mosch Mining Co., 75 IBLA 153 (1983) case where the miner constructed an access road. The Court’s decision was that “in addition to stating a claimant’s right to access to claims, the regulations specify that such access is considered part of the operation, and is addressed under notice of intent or plan of operation.” Maley also states that even though these are BLM cases, on the National Forest, access roads to mining claims would be regulated under 36CFR 228.
2024 AEMA ANNUAL MEETING-Dan Johnson
I brought talking points of concern in regard to issues pertaining to USFS Region 6.
1. Powder EIS-no mining plans to be approved
2. Failure to adhere to the 1897 Organic Act
3. Proposal to eliminate the USFS minerals program
4. Permitting reform
5. Rosemont and validity
6. Reinstatement of the US Bureau of Mines
All these topics were discussed during the convention. Of these, reinstating the Bureau of Mines was an important issue.
The old Bureau of Mines did the Nation a lot of good. The proposal under the Trump administration would be to establish a National Materials & Minerals Council, (just a new name for the Bureau of Mines) which would be tasked with doing the following:
1. Coordinate existing federal mining programs which are scattered throughout several executive departments and agencies.
2. Achieve efficiencies and reduce duplication and inter-agency conflicts.
3. Conduct cutting-edge, industry-wide mineral recovery, recovering minerals from reprocessed legacy mine wastes, and expand recycling efficiencies and opportunities.
4. Increase domestic mining and mineral processing to reduce our dependence on imported minerals.
5. Provide oversight of federal minerals programs and expenditures.
6. Create a Minerals Director equivalent to an Industries Minister of Mines by Executive Order.
BROOKE ROLLINS NOMINATED FOR SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE-Washington AP)
President-elect Donald Trump said Saturday that he will nominate former White House aide Brooke Rollins to be his agriculture secretary, the last of his picks to lead executive agencies and another choice from within his established circle of advisers and allies.
The nomination must be confirmed by the Senate, which will be controlled by Republicans when Trump takes office Jan. 20, 2025. Rollins would succeed Tom Vilsack, President Joe Biden’s agriculture secretary, who oversees the sprawling agency that controls policies, regulations and aid programs related to farming, forestry, ranching, food quality and nutrition. (Editor’s note, they forgot mining).
TRUMP’S PICK FOR SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR IS DOUG BURGUM-Jonathan Lambert
You might know him from: The 2024 Republican presidential primary. The former governor of North Dakota ran on his experience as a successful businessman before dropping out of the primary and becoming a vocal supporter of former President Donald Trump, then the front-runner, landing on the VP shortlist.
More about Burgum:
He sold his software company to Microsoft in 2001 for $1.1 billion.
He is a big booster of oil and gas drilling.
He pledged for North Dakota to be carbon neutral by 2030, largely through carbon capture and storage.
The Department of the Interior oversees public and federal lands and their natural resources, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the National Park Service and the Fish and Wildlife Service. If confirmed as secretary of the interior, Doug Burgum would become a key player in implementing one of the Trump administration’s overarching goals: “Drill, baby, drill.”
The Department of the Interior manages roughly one-fifth of the lands and waters of the United States, giving Burgum — the former governor of an oil-rich state — significant leverage to increase domestic oil and gas production, which is already at an all-time high. But the massive department also oversees national parks and monuments, endangered species protections and relations with federally recognized Native American tribes.
During the first Trump administration, the Department of the Interior cut regulations to make it easier to drill on federal land, significantly weakened the power and scope of the Endangered Species Act and shrunk two national monuments.
Deb Haaland, secretary of the Interior during the Biden administration, reversed many of these actions and focused on boosting conservation and renewable energy.
Burgum is expected to reverse course again. Burgum’s pro-drilling stance is fairly well established, and as Trump’s proposed head of the newly proposed National Energy Council — a body that will oversee regulatory processes across government agencies — he’d have considerable power to push fossil fuel extraction.
BIDEN ADMINISTRATION WITHDRAWS OLD-GROWTH FOREST PLAN AFTER GETTING PUSHBACK FROM INDUSTRY AND GOP—Mathew Brown
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — The Biden administration on Tuesday abruptly dropped its nascent plan to protect old-growth forests after getting pushback from Republicans and the timber industry. The move was announced by U.S. Forest Service Chief Randy Moore in a letter to forest supervisors.
President Joe Biden launched the initiative with an executive order on Earth Day in April 2022. The proposal went through extensive public comment periods and internal analyses by government officials and was due to be finalized any day. The plan would have limited logging in old-growth forests, with exceptions to allow logging in some old-growth areas to protect against wildfires. But those exceptions were not enough for the timber industry and Republicans in Congress who bitterly opposed the administration’s proposal. They said it wasn’t needed since many forested areas already are protected. And they warned it could be devastating to logging companies that rely on access to timber on public lands.
GOP lawmakers introduced legislation while the administration’s plans were still in the works to block them from going into effect.
Moore said in his letter that much was learned from the first-of-its-kind effort to identify old-growth trees on public lands across the nation. He also acknowledged criticism from those who said the administration’s approach to old-growth forests was flawed since they can vary greatly between different types of ecosystems.
“There is strong support for, and an expectation of us, to continue to conserve these forests based on the best available scientific information,” Moore wrote. “There was also feedback that there are important place-based differences that we will need to understand in order to conserve old-growth forests.”
CALICO RESOURCES PROPOSED GRASSY MOUNTAIN GOLD MINE IN MALHEUR COUNTY-Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries:
The Grassy Mountain Gold Project (“Grassy”) is located in Malheur County, eastern Oregon, approximately 22 miles south of Vale, Oregon, and roughly 70 miles west of Boise, Idaho. The project site is situated in the rolling hills of the high desert region of the far western Snake River Plain and consists of 3 patented (private) lode claims where the deposit is located, 462 unpatented lode claims, 9 mill site claims, 6 associated placer claims, and a lease for land surface and surface/mineral rights, all totaling approximately 8,200 acres.
The local terrain is gentle to moderate, with elevations ranging from 3,300 to 4,300 ft. above mean sea level. Calico owns 100% of the private land on which the gold deposit sits and controls all mining claims within the 8,200 acres land package. Calico is applying for a DOGAMI permit and BLM approval of their Plan of Operation.
EOMA ADVERTISING AND SALE LISTINGS
WANTED-GOLD
Gold Specimens and Gold nuggets, mostly from Oregon mines. Fair prices paid. Also selling Gold nugget jewelry, specimens, nuggets and more. For an interesting and informative experience explore www.northernnevadagold.com . Call Robert 775-455-6470
MINING EQUIPMENT FOR SALE
Equipment located in Baker City:
Small trommel, feeder/grizzly, infeed conveyor, Honda pump, 20KW generator, 3” flat hose, sluice
Commercial Sized trommel, feeder, stacker, pump (has cracked housing) sluice
Also, scraper, Conex boxes, clean-up table, road runner screen, screen, diesel tank and pump, army trailer, two slurry pumps, a Honda pump, clean-up room equipment, and additional flat hose.
Equipment located on Connor Creek:
Feeder
Additional flat hose
I can send pictures and can provide details on this equipment. I am willing to discuss offers. Call Bill at 503-781-4393. E-mail me at dei@teleport.com.
TWO-CELL PAN AMERICAN STYLE JIG FOR SALE
Pan-American style, two cell, square, 42×42 inch jig. Includes 3/16” steel shot and 1/4” screens. Pan-American style jigs differ from other jigs as the diaphragm is located under the machine directly below the jig material bed. This increases recovery over other styles such as the “Denver” jig and various other “side pulse” jigs as it lifts the material equally across the entire material bed. Has an electric motor. I have not used this jig myself, and it has been sitting idle for several years. As is, $8,000 or make offer. Located in Unity, Oregon. Contact Ken Alexander 541-446-3413. Pictures can be provided on request.
65 KW ONAN GENERATOR FOR SALE
This is a 65 KW Onan generator mounted on a trailer with home-built cover. Has two junction boxes for power hookups. Comes with instruction manual and parts catalog. It is powered by a UV 401 International Harvester Co. engine with a gas tank hookup, but can be modified for LPG. The unit has only 339.6 Hrs. on the hour meter. Was used by USF&W as backup unit at a fish hatchery. Started and tested in October 2024. $2500 or make offer. Located in Unity, Oregon. Pictures can be provided on request. Contact Ken Alexander at 541-446-3413.
TEST TROMMEL FOR SALE-$1500
This unit is mounted on a trailer and can easily be moved into a site for testing the deposit. Contact Bob at firebasebob@hotmail.com . My phone number is 541-473-2880.
I can e-mail you pictures.
CAPITOL PROSPECTING-METAL DETECTING AND MINING SUPPLIES
We are located in Baker City at 2801 Broadway Street. We buy used equipment and sell both new and used equipment. Come in and see what we have, or call me at 503-269-8640. My e-mail is CapitolProspecting@hotmail.com
We appreciate your business. Gary and Christina Earle
ACTION MINING SERVICES, INC.
AMS is selling assay supplies, screens, chemicals and labware! Call for a quote and mention this ad for 10% off! Assay supplies, concentrators, impact mills, technical books (for the beginner to the advanced mill man), & more! Call for our free catalog or visit us online! Check out our website for information on Wave tables. We are located in Plains, Montana. Please call 406.826.9330 to place your order. This way our staff can have it pulled and ready for pick up. Otherwise, we can always ship your order! sales@actionmining.com • www.actionmining.com
AMERICAN EXPLORATION & MINING ASSOCIATION
EOMA is a member of American Exploration & Mining Association, and many of our members are also individual members. American Exploration & Mining Association is a 128-year-old, 1,400-member, national association representing the minerals industry. With members in 46 states, AEMA is the recognized national voice for exploration, the junior mining sector, maintaining access to public lands, and represents the entire mining life cycle, from exploration through production to reclamation and closure.
You can become a member of AEMA by going to their website at https://www.miningamerica.org
PUBLIC LANDS FOR THE PEOPLE
PLP Mission Statement: Dedicated to Preserving the Rights of the Public to the Access and Use of Public Land. 2025 Raffle Tickets are now available! Supporting PLP’s Grand Raffle also helps us continue to fight for your rights. A book of 12 tickets is only $10. We have a lot of great high value prizes. You can’t win if you don’t enter! Tickets will be available in January to purchase by phone for the 2025 Grand Raffle Drawing. The growing list of the prizes for the 2025 Grand Raffle is published on our PLP Facebook site.
You can call our toll-free number (844)-PLP-1990 which is (844)-757-1990 or Mail a Check to P.O. Box 1660, Inyokern, CA 93527, and specify the number of ticket books you wish to have mailed to you. The drawing date and location is October 11th at the 2025 Red Mountain, California PLP Fallfest event. Public Lands for the People, www.publiclandsforthepeople.org