More exploration approved at Icy Cape, Alaska

sand-denis-delestrac
Photo courtesy of: “Sand Wars” Multi Award-Winning Filmmaker: © Denis Delestrac

Excerpts;

A long stretch of beach at Icy Cape near Yakutat holds the possibility of massive mineral deposit that could produce millions in mining revenue for the Alaska Mental Health Land Trust.

The Icy Cape prospect is a long stretch of coastline about 75 miles northwest of Yakutat in Southeast Alaska owned by the trust at the entrance of Icy Bay that appears to hold world-class deposits of several heavy minerals. The entirety of the area is roughly 48,000 acres and stretches for more than 30 miles along the Gulf of Alaska coast.

Overall, an average of 26 percent of the sands are heavy minerals, according to the Trust Land Office’s 2016 annual report.

The minerals of value in the “ore” — which is mostly old beach sands — are roughly equal portions of epidote and garnet in the areas of highest concentration with small amounts of zircon and even gold.

According to Trust Land Office acting Executive Director, “there is a misconception about the project that mining Icy Cape heavy minerals would literally mean digging up the beach”…

Read Full Article, Alaska Journal (11-17-2017)

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