Submitted news release
ELKO–The Mountain City Ranger District on the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest announced today that it has terminated an order from last August that closed around 20,000 acres in the Jerritt Canyon Mine area, 50 miles north of Elko. The closure order was enacted last year to address such public safety concerns as unsecured adits and shafts that were associated with the unexpected shut down of the Jerritt Canyon Mine. The mine is operated by Queenstake Resources, Inc. (Yukon-Nevada Gold Corp.).
“Yukon-Nevada Gold Corp. has adequately addressed safety hazard concerns at this time, and is providing the necessary site security,” said Susan Elliott, Forest Geologist. Visitors seeking access to Forest lands within the Jerritt Canyon Mine area are required to sign in and out with the Jerritt Canyon Mine Security office, located on the east side of the mine area. The Jerritt Canyon Mine Security office will provide guidelines for mine site access. “Left-hand traffic driving is still the rule when driving on the haul roads,” said Elliott.
The mill is expected to start up again in the near future, but the surrounding mine areas are not currently operating. In the event that active mining operations again resume, the Forest Service will re-evaluate the safety situation to determine if another closure order is necessary to protect the public from health and safety concerns, such as large equipment and haul packs.
“We always want to ensure that visitors in this area remain safe,” said Tom Montoya, Mountain City District Ranger. For further information on this release, please call Tom Montoya at 775-738-5171.
