A drill site at the Palmer Project north of Haines. (Photo courtesy of Constantine Metal Resources)
The work season has come to an unusually early end at the Palmer Project this year. Constantine Metal Resources Vice President of External Affairs Liz Cornejo says that most workers will be leaving camp.
“Sometimes the field season goes from May to October and sometimes it’s shorter,” Cornejo said.
Drilling and mapping crews are done for the year. She says Constantine planned to do less drilling this year than in previous years. Usually they have a goal of drilling about 10,000 meters. This year they only planned to drill between 2,500 and 8,000 meters.
She says Constantine is focusing its resources on other projects like engineering and environmental work. So they’re sending expensive rented resources–the drill and the helicopter–home.
“We’re really focused on putting together all the plans and energy and budgeting and financing that we need to for the 2020 season, which we hope will involve underground exploration work,” said Cornejo.
The underground exploration Constantine may begin next year is a controversial tunnel project that would open the site for year round exploration, accelerating their progress. The state just permitted that effort, but critics say the tunnel will unleash water and expose potentially acid generating rock–compromising the watershed. The company is still working to finance that project.
Cornejo says the past few seasons have been long and she hopes that will be the case next year as well.
