The 110TH National Western Mining Conference and Exhibition was presented by the Colorado Mining Association in Denver this week and guess what they talked about? Here’s a clue: energy, mineral resources, China and India. Oh – and carbon constraints, too.
A fine talk by Vincent Matthews, State Geologist and Director of the Colorado Geological Survey, presented dolefully similar graphs to emphasize his point. Matthews showed a sequence of slides in rapid succession portraying first the exponential growth in a multitude of different commodities’ price trends (they all looked the same – a relatively flat line leading up to the current century and then a projected curve that radically zips off into topmost end of the slide for the next 20 years). He followed this barrage of projected price trends with another similar sequence in rapid succession of the growing rate of global consumption for specific resources – all described with a nearly monotone narration along the lines of, ‘Guess what, China likes coal, so does India…’ Then he overlaid the estimated reserve of these resources with the projected rate of consumption and guess what? The mining industry (actually the entire planet) does not have the reserves to meet the rate of global consumption as it is currently in progress.
That is the theme of our industry today.
I can’t help but think on all the new mountain bikes, cellular phones, digital high-resolution televisions, laptops, MP3 players, batteries, electrical wiring, housing structures and other consumables being sucked into the countries of our cohabitants on the other side of this planet as their populations attain the abilities to purchase their heart’s desire. In the meanwhile, on this side of the planet, our educated masses are shoulder-to-shoulder on green issues in agreement to constrain the mining industry from supplying the resources on the basis of an assumption: kill the mining so that the world won’t burn any carbon into the atmosphere anymore. It seems likely our well-intended advocates for global welfare don’t comprehend the scale of b.t.u consumption that is coming down the pipe. Well-intending people who push legislation through to impede mining are trying to address a situation, i.e. climatic changes or green house effects, that may in all likelihood be unobtainable to start with.
Don Ewigleben (”Ewig” and “Leben” mean “eternal-life” in case you get hung up on this intriguing name), Executive Officer, AngloGold Ashanti Ltd., South Africa and President & CEO, AngloGold Ashanti N.A., Inc., spoke on Price and Production versus Supply; Law / Regulations and NGOs; Health, Environment, and Safety (Anglo and CMA were honoring a grader driver in Cripple Creek, Kenny Rankin, who worked 23 years without a lost time accident!) Mr. Ewigleben briefly mentioned a topic that spoke to my heart: how good it is to be home in the United States after working abroad. His statement seemed to stop at unspoken thoughts on that particular topic as if reflecting more to the story, things like appreciating paved roads and painted lines that actually control traffic as oppose to death-defying anarchy on the roads in other countries – appreciation of American way of life, our luxuries, freedoms, humor, peccadilloes. He had just returned to the US after a bit of a hiatus working in Jo-berg.
A handy quote came from Mark Smith, President & CEO of Chevron Mining, Inc., “Yesterday’s technology should not be the future.” By that, he was embracing a safer, cleaner, greener vision for mining. (Yay)
“We need EVERY form of energy,” Mr. Smith said. “We need coal, oil, gas – this is an economic reality. We also need wind, solar, geothermal, hydroelectric, nuclear, and biomass sources of energy.”
He was referring to a report by the National Petroleum Council – an Oil and Natural Gas Advisory Committee appointed to the Secretary of Energy. This report, “HARD TRUTHS – Facing the Hard Truths About Energy,” is rather dour. Mr. Smith provided some incredible statistics from this report along the lines of a 60% increase in energy demand by 2030 and 40,000 gallons of fuel currently being consumed every SECOND to maintain each person right now!! I mean RIGHT NOW as you read. Glub glub glub….
Even under socially prescribed or legally regulated constraints to limit mining, even under the hypothetical control of global consumption (which I personally doubt can be obtained just look at treaties and sanctions imposed by the international communities to try an uphold human rights, endangered species protection, saving the rain forest, etc., etc.) – even under the lowest projected economic growth scenario — the world will still experience a 50% increase in CO2 production by the year 2030. People want electricity and cars. These things make CO2. Mining supplies the material. Civilization burns it.
What to do? Well, if you are in the mining business, you prepare to operate under stricter strictness of constricting regulations. That makes the price go up and that is the business. You don’t close up shop – you charge more for your product. You can either stay in mining under these circumstances, or you can go to work for a more idealistic industry, like, say – skiing! The ski industry, which despite taking up many thousands of acres of prime public land for say, unlimited time-frame and absolutely zippo environmental impact evaluation — let alone remediation — is highly popular amongst the exact same people (wealthy, affluent Americans) who hate the mining industry – an industry that supplies the material to make these luxuries possible.
The photo, above, is Barbara Filas, President of Knight Piesold Consulting and Chairperson of 110thNational Western Mining Conference. She received this award (little pewter miner guy) to recognize her contribution to organizing the conference. (I couldn’t catch a picture of Judy Colgan — integral staff person — the images were a blur of motion…)
Post a Comment