Feature Stories
Minnesota Mining Country Warms to Tariffs and G.O.P.
April 5, 2018
On northern Minnesota’s Iron Range, where evergreen trees stretch on for miles and snowpack lingers into the spring, a political shift is underway. Generations of residents have gone to work in the mines, endured cycles of booms and layoffs, and
Hecla Mining: Technology Should Retool, Not Replace Miners
April 3, 2018
Despite a lengthy, contentious and expensive strike, Hecla Mining Co. officials want to make something abundantly clear: They’re embracing advances in technology not to bypass contrary employees, but to strengthen the company for the long haul. Workers willing to retool
A Look at Sunshine Mine Disaster as Its Anniversary Nears
April 3, 2018
May 2 will mark the 46th anniversary of the 1972 Sunshine Silver Mine fire in Kellogg, when 91 miners lost their lives — a tragedy which still burns in the hearts of the close-knit Silver Valley and mining communities. According
Alaska’s Longest Lived Mining Operation, Usibelli Coal Mine Celebrates 75 Years
April 2, 2018
2018 marks the 75th anniversary of Alaska’s longest lived mining operation, the Usibelli Coal Mine Inc.‘s coal mining operations near Healy — a monumental milestone honored by the mining community during the Alaska Miners Association Biennial Spring Conference in Fairbanks.
Idaho Mining Association: Mining and the Environment, Working Together
April 2, 2018
Mining in the United States begins with extensive environmental analysis, years of government permitting, opportunities for public and stakeholder engagement, and millions of dollars in studies, exploration and planning. These efforts have led to industry best practices that allow for
Senator Hoeven: Fossil Fuels Aren’t Dead, and North Dakota is Proof
March 22, 2018
One of the most important challenges we face as a nation is reducing our deficit and debt. As a proud fiscal conservative, I understand we must make tough financial decisions; that is why I have worked diligently on measures that
Scott Pruitt is Leading the EPA Toward Greatness
March 20, 2018
In the first season of Donald’s Trump “Presidential Apprentice,” there’s no question who the star hire of his administration has been: EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt. As a candidate for president, Trump argued the massive regulatory state headquartered in Washington was
A Gold Mine of Potash Worth $65 Billion Sits Beneath Michigan
March 19, 2018
About a mile-and-a-half underground in north-central Michigan, an almost-forgotten reserve of the potassium-rich mineral salt potash could be worth $65 billion to the Michigan economy. A widely used agricultural fertilizer, Michigan’s potash may be some of the purest found anywhere
A Trump-Kim Summit Could Unfreeze Mining Riches on Korean Border
March 15, 2018
Sun Hongtao, the youthful-looking president of Sino-Mining International Ltd., is in a funk, sitting in a cold, empty office in the Chinese town of Changbai in Jilin province. Two miles from where he sits, across the border in North Korea,
HAAS eKentucky Advanced Manufacturing Institute to Help Find Future for Unemployed Coal Miners
March 12, 2018
John Ray of Martin County worked in coal mines nearly 10 years before the company told him he would be laid off. He worked his last 60 days then began looking for another job, but “nobody was really optimistic,” Ray