The Top 10 Mining & Energy stories of 2019

Tony Beets, Yukon gold miner and one of the stars of Gold Rush. — Justin Kelly photo

Welcome to a new year and a new decade. There are certainly things to look forward to in 2020 but first, let’s take a look back at the year that was 2019.

What were you, our readers, most interested in reading on Mining & Energy for the past 12 months? A diverse range of subject matter made the Top 10—from reading about Discovery Channel stars, to the newest and safest alternative to shipping crude oil to Alberta’s Vista Coal Project, our readers made it clear they have a wide range of interests.

Counting down from tenth position, we bring you the Mining & Energy Top 10 stories of 2019:

Carbon Engineering's air contactor, fully installed. — Photo courtesy Carbon Engineering

Carbon Engineering will capture about one tonne of CO2 per day

A pilot project in the coastal mountains north of Vancouver has started sucking carbon dioxide (CO2) out of the atmosphere with the eventual goal of turning the gas into low-carbon fuel.

Aerial photo of Hinton plant location. — Photo courtesy Ryan Walchuck

Will it be the biggest in North America?

Vista could potentially be the biggest export thermal coal mine in North America. The project is spearheaded by Coalspur Mines Ltd, a coal exploration and development company with offices in both Canada and Australia. Vista covers about 10,000 hectares of mineable coal development and is situated close to Canadian National Railway’s main line near Hinton, Alberta.

Teck has five steelmaking coal operations in the Elk Valley region of British Columbia. — Brielle Will photo

Canada's coal industry is alive and well, with a bright future ahead

Canadian coal is sought after all across the globe, as it serves an important role in energy, steelmaking and other high-demand sectors.

Ken Foy, one of the stars in Yukon Gold — Adam Blasberg/Yukon Gold, Paperny Entertainment photo

“I love what I do up there. I love the thrill of it, and I love the chase."

Ken Foy is living proof that one seemingly insignificant decision can set the course for the rest of your life.

This Globe and Mail photo by Michelle Sui shows what a CanaPux of bitumen would look like. — Photo courtesy Michelle Sui/Globe and Mail newspaper

It sounds like CN Rail is betting on the new technology to be a safe alternative to shipping oil in crude liquid form.

Will CanaPux help transport oil sands bitumen safely to market by rail? Canada’s largest railway has filed a patent application for a new technology that turns bitumen—the heavy crude produced at the oil sands—into a mostly solid dry good, by mixing and wrapping it with polymer.

This is an aerial view of the Vista Coal Project near Hinton, Alberta. — Photo courtesy Coalspur Mines Ltd.

Coalspur Mines' Vista Coal Project has the potential to be the largest thermal coal mine in North America

Hinton, a community located in west central Alberta, is no stranger to mining. The town, according to Chris Borowski of Coalspur Mines, has supported coal mining operations for more than 100 years. There are currently four mines in operation in the area—and there will soon be a fifth.

The Copper Mountain Mine is in the process of expanding to include the New Ingerbelle project. — Photo courtesy Copper Mountain Mine

These thriving operations are the crux of Canada's copper industry.

Canada is one of the world's major copper producers, with the highest concentration of the metal being sourced in Ontario and B.C. Most companies mine copper as a co-product in conjunction with other metals, such as molybdenum, zinc, nickel or lead, and it is typically found in large sulfide and porphyry deposits.

The Bunce family: Justin, Robin, Shaun, Claudia and Josh — Michael Hall photo

”We’re just a bunch of hillbillies mining for jade, crazy to begin with. We’re not doing this for TV—this is way we live our lives and it’s funny to some people,” said Claudia Bunce, star of Discovery Channel’s Jade Fever.

It’s safe to say Jade Fever has captured the attention of Canada and the world beyond with their first-hand account of life as a jade miner in northern British Columbia. At the heart of the show is the bigger than life personality of Claudia Bunce who along with her husband, Robin, owns and operates the Cassiar Mountain Jade store and Dease Lake Jade Mining.

James Bay is home to 11 hydroelectric projects, including La Grande-2A, -3 and -4, the largest of the group. — Photo courtesy P199

These dams help make Canada a hydro superpower

Canada is known worldwide for its natural resource industries including hydropower and is thus considered a hydro superpower. Starting in earnest during the 1950s and progressing into a billion-dollar industry today, hydroelectricity dam construction has led to Canada producing 60 per cent of its power from its waterways, an amount second only to China.

Tony Beets, Yukon gold miner and one of the stars of Gold Rush. — Justin Kelly photo

Meet Tony Beets, veteran gold miner and one of the stars of Discovery Channel’s Gold Rush reality series.

Whether or not he would succeed was never a question for Tony Beets, veteran gold miner and one of the stars of Discovery Channel’s Gold Rush reality series. It was only a matter of when and how.