Monday, May 12, 2025

Field Trip: Butte’s Rich Mining History

Departure time: 9:00 a.m.
(Please check in at the conference registration desk before boarding the bus.)

Return Time: 4:00 pm (those opting out of a stop at Headframe Spirits Tasting Room)
                          5:00 pm (those who chose to tour the Tasting Room)

A light breakfast and lunch will be provided.

This tour will visit the World Museum of Mining, make stops at several existing headframes where a history of each mine site will be shared, and will conclude with a tour of Headframe Spirits’ Kelley Manufacturing facility, which is housed in the Kelley Mine yard. You will see first-hand the positive effects of repurposing the mining facility. This stop will include a tour the largest American Single Malt distillery West of the Mississippi. At the completion of this portion of the tour, attendees will be given the option to visit Headframe Spirits Tasting Room to learn more about their spirits. Each guest will receive a drink token good for one drink in our Tasting Room to be enjoyed that evening or during their next trip.

Note: those not interested in touring the Tasting Room will have the option to return to Fairmont. Bus transportation will also be available for those who choose to stay for the tour and sample a spirit or two.

Corn Hole Tournament

Join us for the 4th Annual Conference Corn Hole Tournament, sponsored by   Water & Environmental Technologies.

  • Register online or the day of the event beginning at 6:00 pm.
  • Draw for teams at 6:30 pm and start throwing at 7:00 pm.
  • 2 free drink tickets per person and light snacks will be provided.
  • Spectators are WELCOME!
  • Prizes:  
    1. 1 st  - $80 cash plus swag
    2. 2 nd  - $50 cash plus swag
    3. 3 rd  - $30 cash plus swag

Tuesday, May 13, 2025

Tuesday, May 13, 2025 Agenda
Time Activity

8:30 a.m.

Welcome breakfast sponsored by Enviromin, a Division of RESPEC

Keynote/Breakfast Speaker

9:00 a.m. 

Mark Compton, American Exploration & Mining Association

9:45 a.m. 

Break

Legal Session

10:00 a.m.

MEPA/NEPA Coordination, specifically the Stillwater East Boulder Amendment 004
Millie Olsen, Montana DEQ

10:30 a.m.

Proof of Concept: The Good Samaritan Pilot Program
Jake Dillon, Crowley Fleck

Mine Development Session

11:00 a.m. 

Bunker Hill Mining
Tom Francis, Bunker Hill Mining

11:30 a.m.

Case Study of a Very Large Sand and Gravel Sale from Benton City, Washington
Sarah Doyle, LG, BLM

Noon

Lunch

15 Years of Ninemile Basin Remediation Bunker Hill Superfund Site Session

1:00 p.m. 

Part 1: Ninemile Basin Background and Investigation Approach
Kyle Richards, Coeur d’Alene Trust and Alan Hughes, Maul Foster & Alongi

1:20 p.m.

Part 2: Siting Design of the EFNM Waste Consolidation Area
Tausha Miller, CDM Smith

1:50 p.m.

Part 3: Overview of Source Site Design and Remediation Construction Elements
Tony Wesche, Pioneer Technical Services

2:20 p.m.

Part 4: Ninemile Basin Closeout and What Success Look Like
Kyle Richards, Coeur d’Alene Trust & Alan Hughes, Maul Foster & Alongi

2:30 p.m.

Break

Strategic Minerals Session

3:00 p.m.

Systematic Evaluation of Mine Waste for Critical Minerals
Adrian Van Rythoven, Montana Bureau of Mines & Geology

3:30 p.m.

Novel Processes for Recovering High Value Materials from Unconventional Sources: An Update
Teagan Leitzke, PhD & Jerry Downey, PhD, Montana Technological University

4:00 p.m.

Berkeley Pit Rare Earth Element Recovery Demonstration
Michael Calhoun, Montana Bureau of Mines & Geology

4:30 p.m.

Social sponsored by Tetra Tech

Tetra Tech attendees networking

Attendees enjoying a beautiful evening while networking at the social hosted by Tetra Tech.


Wednesday, May 14, 2025

Wednesday, May 14, 2025 Agenda
Time Activity

Water Session

8:30 a.m. 

Sustainable Biogeochemical Approaches for Mine Water Management
Rachel Spietz, PhD, Enviromin, a Division of RESPEC

9:00 a.m. 

Microcosm Sediment Amendment Treatability Testing on Mercury-Contaminated Reservoir Sediment
Steve Dent, PhD, CDM Smith

9:30 a.m.

TBD
Bob Ballantyne, RWI Enhanced Evaporation

10:00 a.m.

Break

10:30 a.m.

Groundwater Recovery and Water Quality Trends at the Decker Coal Mine (Hydro)
Emily Lodman, PhD, Montana DEQ

Mine Operations Session

11:00 a.m. 

Reducing Unit Mining Cost by Improving Mine Productivity (Mine Operation)
Samuel Addo-Frempong, Tex-Mining

11:30 a.m.

The Use of Polymers for Dust and Erosion Control on Mine Sites
John Vermillion, Environmental Products & Applications

Noon

Lunch

Reclamation Session

1:00 p.m. 

Repair of a Reclaimed Coal Mine Site Damaged by the Historic 2022 Yellowstone Area Flood Event
Trent B. Thomas, PE, CDM Smith

1:30 p.m.

Alaska Placer Mine Stream Reclamation – A Journey of Learning
James Whitlock, BLM

2:00 p.m.

Rehabilitation of the Orphan Girl’s Underground Shaft Station
Jeanette Kopf, World Museum of Mining & Scott Rosenthal, PhD, PE, Montana Tech

2:30 p.m.

Break

3:00 p.m.

A ‘Sleeping Giant’: Sustainable Closure of Barrick’s Legacy Giant Nickel Tailings Storage Facility
Allison Brown, P.Geo., Barrick Gold Corporation

Solving Environmental Problems Session

3:30 p.m.

Coal Seam Fires
Tyrel Hulet, Trihydro

4:00 p.m.

Changing the Mining Education Paradigm
Nancy Schlepp, Sandfire Resources America

4:30 p.m.

Dam Foundation Problems and
Michael Gobla, US Bureau of Reclamation

5:00 p.m.

Social sponsored by Pioneer Technical Services

Pioneer Technical Services attendees getting food

Attendees helping themselves to an amazing spread of food at the social hosted by Pioneer Technical Services. 


Thursday, May 15, 2025

Thursday, May 15, 2025 Agenda
Time Activity

8:30 a.m.

Use of a Drone for Mapping Large-scale Sites
Patrick Rennie, Montana DEQ

9:00 a.m. 

Exploring for Growth at the Madison Mine
Zachery Hibdon, American Pacific Mining

9:30 a.m.

Intelligent Exploration
Zach Black, Ethos Geologic

10:00 a.m. 

Break

10:30 a.m.

Selection of Porphyry Copper Exploration Targets through Mapping of Thermochemical Indictors of Economic Deposits
George Brimhall, Clementine

11:00 a.m.

Update on the USGS Geophysical Data Collection, Southwestern Montana
Kyle Eastman, Montana Bureau of Mines & Geology

11:30 a.m.

Women in Mining: Overcoming Barriers, Shaping the Industry
Lacey Morrison, Women in Mining

Noon

Lunch