27

28

26

20

23

25

24

22

1933

31

18

17

34

35

29

30

16

15

12

6

14

9

4

5

13

8

11

3

2

1

38

37

36

7

Kilometres

Metal Coal Industrial Mineral

Communities Benefiting from MineralExploration In British Columbia 2008

by B. Northcote, J. DeGrace, D. Grieve, B. Madu, P. Wojdak, K. Cobb and S. Meredith-Jones

January 2009

Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources Office

Major Exploration Projects

SCALE

100 50 0 100 200Kilometres

See Exploration and Mining in British Columbia 2008 for more information.

Open File 2009-2

Fort St. John

Community area of influence10

Major Exploration Projectsat Operating Mines Metal Mine

Coal Mine

IndustrialMineral

Major Exploration Projectsat Proposed Mine Developments

Metal

Coal

Metal

Coal

Atlin

Dease Lake

Bob Quinn

Iskut

Princeton

Kelowna

Chetwynd

Tumbler Ridge

Lower Post

Fort Nelson

Stewart

Terrace

Kitimat

PortHardy

PortMcNeil

Powell River

Tofino

CampbellRiver

Courtenay

NanaimoHope

PentictonBeaverdell

Osoyoos

Greenwood

Vernon

Golden

Invermere

Nakusp

Castlegar

Rossland

Trail

Nelson

MerrittLytton

PortRenfrew

PortAlberni

Masset

Sandspit

QueenCharlotteCity

Houston

Bella Coola

Fort St.James

Mackenzie

Vanderhoof

Fraser Lake

Quesnel

Little Fort

Burns Lake

Hazelton

Telegraph Creek

Blue River

Revelstoke

WilliamsLake

Prince Rupert

New Afton

Harper Ck.

Prosperity

Davidson

Willow Creek

Galore Creek

KSM

Kutcho Creek

Morrison

Schaft Creek

Roman Mtn.

Horizon (Five Cabin)Mt. Milligan

Adanac

Highland Valley Copper(Cu-Mo-Au-Ag)

Orca (At)

Quinsam

Myra Falls(Zn-Cu-Au-Ag)

Endako(Mo)

Perry Creek

Gibraltar(Cu-Mo)

Mount Polley(Au-Cu)

MAX(Mo)

Greenhills

Marten-Wheeler

Coles Creek

Rossland & South Belt

JJ

Crack

Taseko Lake

Snowfields

LennacLone Pine

Tag

YellowjacketStorie

J&L

Crazy Fox

Ball Creek

Louise Lk.

Lustdust

Lorraine-Jajay

Woodjam

Blue River(Ta/NB)

Jersey-EmeraldCopperMtn.

Bralorne

OK

PanoramaRidge

Mt. Michael

Castle Mtn.

Chu

Red Bird

Nithi MtnBerg

Kwanika

Spanish Mtn

Turnagain

Akie

TJ Ridge

PorphyryPearl

Naskeena

Goodrich

Yankee-Dundee

Slocan Silver

Thor

RuddockCreek

Hushamu/ NW Expo

Barbara Anne

Ajax

Cassiar Gold

Homestake Ridge

Lac La Hache

PeakBabine

Mouse Mtn

McConnell Creek

Croy-Bloom

HuguenotBelcourt West

Megaton

FraserGold

Brewster LakeHoof

Capoose

Jean

Falcon

Captain

Bodine

Jan/Tam/Misty

Crowsnest

Kenville

Groundhog

McFarlane

Corey

Newmont Lk.

Silver Coin

Prospect Valley

Todd Ck.Dilworth

Copeland

Joss’alun

Swan

Bonanza Ledge

MineralCreek

GrizzlyTrek

Laura

Aspira

Big BulkKitsault

Babs

Zymo

Cottonbelt

Suskwa

Brynnor

CK

Pearson

Honeybun

GreenwoodArea

IsintokLake

Foremore

MinerMtn.

Howell

Eaglehead

Swift Katie

Taseko

Reliance

MO

Prime-Man

Engineer

Rabbit South

Golden Eagle

Logan CopperRateria

Red Chris

BigOnion

Catface

Afton Area

Gold King

Shasta

Haskins Mountain

SIB

Whiting Creek

Year

Exp

nit

re($

Mil

ions)

ed

u

l

BC Mineral Exploration Annual Expenditures

Major Exploration Projectsat Mine Developments

International Basin

Porcher Island

G

YE EO VL ROG UI SALC

COLUH MSI BTI IAR

B

BC Geological Survey

www.empr.gov.bc.ca/Mining/Geoscience

Prince George

Cranbrook

Fort St. John

Smithers

Kamloops

Vancouver

Victoria

Fernie

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

450

1974

1976

1978

1980

1982

1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

2000

2002

2004

2006

2008

?$367 million in mineral exploration expenditures?98 projects with budgets greater than $1 million?256 projects with budgets greater than $100,000?Mineral Tenure Acquisitions = 5,167,246 hectares?32 new mineral discoveries reported

2008 Mineral Exploration Statistics

N

Main Communities [other communities] Projects Employment

(Field Person

Years)*

Expenditure

(C$M)**

Northwest 1 Atlin 14 16 13.92 Dease Lake [Telegraph Creek, Smithers] 14 31 17.33 Iskut [Telegraph Creek, Smithers, Terrace] 8 121 27.24 Eskay Creek-Bob Quinn [Iskut, Smithers, Stewart, Terrace] 11 50 25.65 Stewart [Terrace] 10 27 12.76 Prince Rupert [Haida Gwai] 5 12 5.67 Terrace [Kitimat] 7 4 1.88 Smithers-Houston 37 47 32.49 Fraser Lake 4 9 3.5

Northwest totals 110 317 139.9

Northeast 11 Chetwynd-Tumbler Ridge [Dawson Creek, Fort St. John] 10 96 22.4

Northeast totals 10 96 22.4

North-Central 12 Toodoggone [Prince George, Mackenzie, Smithers] 6 44 7.113 Fort St. James [Prince George, MacKenzie] 24 110 28.914 Vanderhoof [Burns Lake, Fraser Lake, Prince George] 6 23 14.415 Quesnel-Wells-Williams Lake [Prince George] 28 167 29.6

Central totals 64 344 79.9

South-Central15 Quesnel-Wells-Williams Lake [Prince George] 1 1 0.316 Lac La Hache-100 Mile House-Little Fort [Kamloops] 11 16 4.817 Bridge River-Lillooet [Cache Creek, Kamloops] 20 29 8.818 Kamloops-Merrit-Clinton-Cache Ck-Clearwater 50 64 19.619 Princeton-Tulameen 8 41 12.420 Revelstoke [Kamloops] 5 54 16.622 Kelowna-Peachland [Penticton] 6 4 1.223 Keremeos-Penticton-Okanagan Falls-Beaverdell-Osoyoos 6 7 2.038 Blue River 1 8 2.5

South-Central totals 108 223 68.1

Southeast22 Kelowna-Peachland [Penticton] 3 1 0.324 Greenwood-Grand Forks-Rock Creek [Osoyoos] 6 5 2.125 Rossland-Trail-Castlegar-Nelson-Salmo 21 44 11.426 Spillamacheen-Invermere-Golden [Cranbrook] 1 1 0.227 Cranbrook-Kimberley [Creston] 11 11 3.628 Fernie-Sparwood [Cranbrook] 9 42 17.7

37 Nakusp [Kaslo, New Denver, Silverton, Trout Lake] 12 33 6.2

Kootenay totals 63 137 41.6

Southwest 29 Port Hardy-Port McNeil [Campbell River] 10 7 3.930 Campbell River [Courtney, Comox] 5 7 3.131 Port Alberni-Tofino [Nanaimo] 5 7 3.033 Powell River-Sechelt 1 1 0.334 Victoria-Port Renfrew 2 7 3.0

35 Vancouver-Harrison Lake-Hope 7 3 1.5

36 Vancouver-Pemberton 3 1 0.3

Southwest totals 33 34 15.2

Provincial Totals 388 1150 367.1* There are more than 800 additional, full-time mineral exploration jobs based in the Lower Mainland and other major cities.

Note: A field person year equals 250 days in the field. Exploration workers can work for periods of

weeks on small projects to all year on large projects. Some workers will work on several projects which

can be for different companies.

Communities Benefiting from B.C. Mineral Exploration in 2008

** Estimates include field, office and service industry expenditures (lab analysis, legal services, etc.)Individual total may not necessarily equal provincial totals due to rounding of numbers

January 23, 2009