Course:EOSC311/2021/Teaching adolescents about Gold Mining in Bc

Introduction

The intent of this wiki is to connect Geology and gold mining through teaching in a secondary classroom setting. Many of these concepts can be carried over into the elementary setting, such as field trips and the basics of mining and geology. As we move along, we will show how the study of Gold mining from a geological perspective can be turned into a multidisciplinary topic at the secondary level.

A gold pan filled with flakes of Gold retrieved from a river bed

Why use Gold mining

Gold mining was chosen to connect teaching and Geology because it's interesting, practical and has an upper hand on other elements when it comes to captivating students. Touching on placer gold mining and gold panning before merging into large mining operations can gain more engagement and interest from students captivated by the thought that people can, and do, simply find gold in river beds using just a pan. The perceived elusiveness combined with the high value of gold will ideally increase curiosity, resulting in an interest to learn about geology.

Why British Columbia

Teaching about the province and landscape that we see around us brings a relevance to the material. British Columbia is rich with gold mining History and focusing on areas local to the teaching district could be connected to future field trips. There are also many local gold mining companies and groups that could be contacted to come present material to the class regarding the industry. For example, in Kelowna, there is a popular YouTube personality, Dan Hurd, who has extensive experience panning and educating others, which could be a great resource for the classroom or you could even reach out for an in-person presentation! Canada's gold mining industry is so vast that it is ranked as the most valuable mined mineral to Canada, with $10.3 Billion of gold being produced in 2019 . Around 10% of this production occurs in British Columbia, with the two highest producing provinces being Ontario and Quebec.

What is placer gold

Placer gold refers to to gold deposits that have been transported and deposited by water. This includes existing and old stream beds, valleys and benches. The second type of gold mining is hard rock mining which we see in bigger mines as it requires more machinery. This second type of mining requires large amounts of parent material to be dug up, crushed, and sorted through mechanical and chemical processes to remove any gold that it may carry.

Due to its high density, gold will try to work its way to the bottom of lighter sediments such as sand and other deposits. Using a gold pan with sediment of interest in it, water is added and slowly swirled around, gently releasing the sediment and water on top from the pan. This is done until only the heaviest sediments are left at the bottom, in which ideally there will be gold. The heavier the concentration of gold in the sediments of that area, the higher yield you will find in your pan. This is a very simplified version of panning, and many more tools are available to make placer mining more efficient.

Teaching topics

As we are dealing with elementary and secondary Students, all of these topics cover mostly surface level information whilst providing an opportunity to dive deeper depending on student engagement or the educators preference.

Geology of Gold Deposits

As with many other metals and minerals, highly concentrated gold deposits are typically associated with large deposits of igneous rock created through volcanic activity. The reason many of these reserves are found in British Columbia is due to these deposits being brought to the surface from plate collisions and oogenesis. These primary deposit "veins" of gold could have filled into cracks into the mantle and cooled before being transported via plate tectonics to mineable depths. To create secondary deposits, these gold-rich rocks are worn down and the gold is then transported by water to its next settling place. Looking into primary deposits and secondary deposits, we can use two prominent examples. For primary deposits, we can take a look at the Mascot Gold mine in Hedley, BC and the Britannia Mine near Vancouver. Both mines are great examples of mining primary deposits, and will be further talked about in Teaching resources. Although only a couple episodes were filmed in BC, the discovery show "Gold Rush" shows mid-scale placer operations that incorporate heavier machinery to mine placer Gold deposits.

One of the many camps used by Placer miners as they made their way through rough terrain to reach the gold-rich deposits inland

History of Gold mining in British Columbia

The history of Gold mining in Canada goes back long before Canada as a country even existed. There are records from 7000 years ago that show indigenous communities had been working with metals, including gold. In British Columbia, Gold mining started to gain attention in 1858 when deposits were found in the Cariboo region, attracting placer miners from the south. Many gold rushes followed, including the famous Klondike Gold rush which occurred in the Yukon, but required miners to make a long journey through norther British Columbia to reach the supposedly rich deposits.

A significant gold rush that occurred in British Columbia was the Fraser Valley gold rush which brought tens of thousands of miners from California in search for gold in the Fraser river valley in the late 1850's. As with many gold rushes, this one did not last long, ending in the mid 1860's.

Gold rushes became less frequent, but the search for Gold has been continuous throughout British Columbia's short history. Today, there are many mines in operation that produce gold as one of their primary products.

Environmental Impact

When focusing on placer mining, the environmental impact is not as noticeable as compared to the impact of larger underground operations. A significant example to use in the classroom would be the Britannia mine. There are useful videos on their site regarding the issues they faced regarding environmental impacts. The major issue faced by many of these gold mines is Acid Rock Drainage. In short, this occurs due to more rock surface area being exposed to water and oxygen which increases chemical reactions between the two. These reactions produce concentrations of harmful sulphuric acid and can have high concentrations of dissolved metals. Before the issues were addressed, all of these harmful mining by-products were draining into the local waterways, heavily polluting them. This pollution was addressed and in the early 2000's measures were put in place to treat the water and protect the environment.

This topic is not only extremely important, but the awareness is increasing over our impact on the environment. Educating about protecting our precious natural environment is paramount in a cleaner future. Britannia is one of hundreds of mines in British Columbia that have posed threats to the environment, with Britannia being one of the few that has actually acted on addressing the issues. Abandoned mines that are still releasing pollutants into the environment exist across the province.

Social and Economic impacts

Gold is most know for its use in jewelry and fashion, but it also has other practical uses in the world. The manufacturing of many electronics uses gold due to it being an effective conductor that doesn't easily corrode. Majority of students most likely have a cell phone, which contain almost $2 worth of gold each depending on the model . As technology advances, Gold is being used more in the circuit boards and components for new systems, from electric vehicles to new NASA space vehicles.

Many towns in British Columbia exist, or benefit due to the existence of Gold mines. Gold mining is often in remote areas, which means the companies need to make the infrastructure to sustain the mine. Whether it be power generation, road access or water treatment, there are many ways local communities can benefit from the money brought in by these companies.

On the flip side of this, there are many issues with proposition and creation of mines on Aboriginal Unceded land. With our knowledge regarding the environmental impacts of mines and the impact they have on the areas they are created, it is understandable as to why there may be opposition to their creation.

Teaching Resources

Learning Goals

The fun thing about focusing on Gold mining is that, as shown above, it connects to so many other topics. We can choose to focus on one, or all of these things in our teaching. Listed here are some potential learning goals to focus on during your teachings:

A retired mining truck in front of Britannia mine museum

• Determine what factors contribute towards and ideal mining location

• Be able to devise some ways to lessen the negative impacts of mining
• Explain why gold is so valuable and give examples of some of its uses

• History of gold mining in BC and how it has changed over the years

Field Trips and activities

Due to it's rich history in Gold mining, British Columbia hosts a few mines dedicated to educating the community about mining. Britannia mine, 55kms north of Vancouver, offers tours and has a museum that can be a major asset to your course. They focus on the process of mining from establishment all the way until environmental impacts and how they work to control pollution to this day. Closer to the interior is the Hedley Mascot mine. They have closed for a short period, but they used to offer tours of their unique mine. It is situated almost 1km up above the valley floor on the side of a mountain and boasts a network of tunnels inside with plenty of outbuilding full of goldmining history. In an outdoor education setting, there should be plenty of opportunities to get your students involved in the learning. There are placer mining communities that are eager to share their techniques and could possibly give tutorials in an actual outdoor setting. In Kelowna, mission creek has been known to produce some gold and it would be an incredible experience to get some pans in the hands of students so they can experience first-hand what it is like to pan for gold.

Online Resources

There are plenty of valuable resources online, available for teachers to present to their students to solidify learning. Listed are a few resources and a description of what they are:

• MinderalsEd - Is a fantastic, BC based, resource that includes extensive teaching tools relating to minerals, mining and the like. Here you can find teaching lessons and activities for most grade levels, possible field trip locations in BC, and find potential guest speakers for your classroom. This is by far the most extensive resource for teachers in BC looking to make geology-related lesson plans.
• Dan Hurd - Is a Kelowna local and Gold prospector who post informational and entertaining videos on placer gold mining in the area.
• World Gold Council - Is a cite dedicated to everything gold mining. It has a full segment series on how gold mines are established from start to finish, very interesting facts about gold to captivate your classroom, and much more.

Conclusion

If you are looking for a topic that will captivate your students and give you the ability to connect multiple disciplines under one topic, Gold mining is a fantastic choice. From the start it can help you merge into the geology basics of land transformation and how that produces certain elements and rock formations we see today. The focus on the creation of mines and their environmental or social impacts are not exclusive to gold mining, and can apply to many mines and other industrial practices, but Gold mining is a fantastic platform to deliver this learning on.