kind of land movements Ellesmere's
rocks have undergone.
(PHOTO BY JANE GEORGE)
July 28, 2000
JANE GEORGE
Nunatsiaq News
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CARL RITTER BAY — Picturesque and immensely isolated, Ellesmere Island’s northern coast may also be very rich in minerals.
If a major ore deposit lies tucked away somewhere in this remote polar corner, it could decide the future direction of mining and business in Nunavut’s High Arctic.
The Geological Survey of Canada is now in its third and final summer of geological mapping at Ellesmere’s Carl Ritter Bay.
Last year they reported finding encouraging evidence, or what geologists refer to as "showings" of zinc, nickel, and copper deposits along the Judge Daly Promontory.
Hundreds of million years ago, when this region was covered in water, underwater volcanic activity heated up the seawater. This mineral-rich brine rained metals as it cooled, creating ore deposits that can be found today’s rocks, although these aren’t always easy to find, due to the folding and breaking of rock layers over the years.
But the geologists’ report northeastern Ellesmere contains enough promise to spur mining companies to stake out the area, one of the last unprospected and unmapped regions in all of Canada.
This season, an exploration team from the mining company, Cominco, which owns the Polaris mine on Little Cornwallis Island moved in right next door to the GSC camp at Carl Ritter Bay to take a closer look at the region’s mineral potential.
Full potential unkown
Mike Gunning, Cominco’s chief exploration geologist on site, said its mineral potential was "unknown."
"But we obviously wouldn’t be here if it didn’t have potential," Gunning said.
He and five other geologists with Cominco spend their days doing what’s called "reconnaissance" activities. They comb the surrounding area by helicopter, take samples from the steep hills, and prospect in stream beds, looking for any and all signs of rich mineral deposits nearby.
Gunning said he should have a fair idea by August whether or not Cominco should take down its camp at Carl Ritter Bay this year after everyone leaves, or let its stand until another season.
If Cominco decides to return next year, according to Gunning, they’ll "really whack away at it," doing intensive exploration of the most promising spots.
Polaris closing in 2001
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What the team would like to find here are indications of an ore deposit at least as large and easy get to as the one by the Polaris mine, which is due to shut down in 2001.
A decision not to return to Carl Ritter could mean a wind-down in High Arctic exploration and mining — at least, in the near future.
While Cominco and Noranda have both been exploring on Somerset Island and on Ellesmere’s Grinnell Peninsula, nothing major has turned up — yet.
But after the Polaris mine closes, there will be one less reason to keep looking around the High Arctic islands.
Yet locating a deposit is just one of the hurdles facing mining development in the High Arctic region. There’s its remoteness, its short summer season, and the major expense of doing work 1,500 kilometers away from Resolute, the nearest supply point.
With the discovery of additional rich deposits near Red Dog mine in Koztebue, Alaska as well as in the tropics, there’s also less of a push to work in northern Ellesmere’s hostile environment.
"The size of the deposit would have to be fairly large to compete with other deposits," said Keith Dewing, the GSC geologist at Carl Ritter and a former Cominco employee.
According to Dewing, a deposit even the size of the one at Polaris would probably be too small an incentive for Cominco to take the leap into northeastern Ellesmere.
Even if Cominco does turn up something exceptional this summer near Carl Ritter, it could be 10 years before the find evolves into a mine.
Resolute worried
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And this may not be soon enough to save Resolute. In Resolute, there’s a rash of hopeful rumours floating around to the effect that Cominco is on the verge of making the biggest find ever in Carl Ritter Bay.
Some say they’ve heard that after the Polaris mine closes, Cominco plans to float its mining facilities on Little Cornwallis Island up to Ellesmere Island.
"The people in Resolute are desperate, but Cominco is less corporatively desperate than many in Resolute would like," said Dewing. "People always get their hopes up. They get a kind of fever, but if metal was this easy to find, they’d be giving it away for free."
Businesses in Resolute know they will face a hard blow when Polaris closes, and First Air has to pull out its jet service due to a reduced demand for passenger and cargo transport.
"We spend a lot of money in Resolute," Gunning said. "So, the issue for Nunavut isn’t the 150 people who work there [at Polaris], but those who work in the town."
The Nunavut government has assured Cominco of its desire to support more mining development in the High Arctic, but Gunning said it’s too early to say how supportive the new territory will actually be.
"The verdict on Nunavut is not out yet," Gunning said. "It won’t be until someone finds something big, and, then, we’ll watch what happens."
Geologists at Carl Ritter Bay say Nunavut’s most promising mining prospect to watch is the Meliadine gold find near Baker Lake.