A Passion For Gold: An Autobiography

16. Epilogue

Chapter 16 Epilogue The Geological Survey was my life for almost half a century. When I joined the usgs in 1939 it was a small, tight network of dedicated scientists with the freedom to select and carry out unique research projects, so long as they fit into the overall program. Of course this changed with the strategic mineral program begun by Foster Hewett in the early days of World War II. Foster understood the needs of industry in wartime, and he hired geologists to study and evaluate strategic mineral deposits. After the war, the usgs continued to expand, and new programs were added. But expansion doesn’t go on indefinitely; fortunately, I was already gone when a large-scale reduction in force took place in October 1995. More than nine hundred geologists, scientists, and technicians were offered early retirement, demoted, or laid off, and as in industry, the anxiety only increased competition for jobs. Programs continue to be cut back drastically, and the present-day usgs lacks the necessary number of scientists to conduct the basic scientific research our government needs if it is to adequately study, conserve, and use our natural resources. I realize that change is inevitable, but I can only worry about the effects of such drastic reductions. So, I have decided to spend my remaining years helping to educate the geologists who will be the discoverers in the new century. In 1995 I helped set up a lecture series in economic geology at Nevada’s Mackay School of Mines. The lectures focus on Carlin-type gold deposits, specifically those in north-central Nevada. Since our discovery of these deposits, it has become clear that they are a type not tied to a specific locality. Fig. 16.1. Odin Christensen (left), of Newmont Mining Company, after delivering first CREG lecture, and author. Fig. 16.2. Author flanked by Michael (left) and Kim at first CREG lecture. The tremendous efforts of the Mackay School of Mines, under Dean Jane Long, and leaders of the mining industry created the Ralph J. Roberts Center for Research in Economic Geology (creg). Under the direction of Tommy Thompson it is now producing many excellent graduates who are carrying on fundamental research. Odin Christensen , chief of exploration at Newmont Mining Company, wrote to me in January 2000 to report that he had attended the Annual Research Review meeting of the Center for Research in Economic Geology. He said that it was an excellent technical meeting at which students presented cutting-edge geologic work. He was most impressed by the fact that through creg, a group of geologists from industry, the government , and academic fields were all working together and communicating freely. In order to give further support to the geology program at Reno, I moved the scholarship funds given in memory of Steven from Harvard to the University of Nevada in 1997. My dream is that this program on Carlin-type gold deposits will continue to grow. After all, these deposits may yield a hundred million or more ounces of gold in the next fifty years. I am not aware of any other class of ore deposits that has received such detailed study as those of the Carlin Belt and its cousins, the 196 A Passion for Gold Fig. 16.3. Tommy Thompson, director of CREG. Battle Mountain and Getchell Belts. During April 2002, cumulative gold production from Carlin-trend mines exceeded 50 million troy ounces valued at 20 billion dollars. Direct and indirect services add another 14 billion dollars to Nevada’s economy. Annual production today is about 4 million ounces, and the reserves are approximately 57 million ounces. I am proud to be part of this picture. As I look back on my years with the usgs, I feel that I was trusted with some of Nature’s secrets. It was easy to develop a passion for gold—if for no other reason than its beauty, in its native crystal form, formed into an objet d’art, or as gleaming liquid from the furnace. For many years I was strengthened and blessed by the love and partnership of Arleda, my wife of forty-six years, and our three sons, Michael, Steven, and Kim, each unique and special. During all these years Arleda and I took great joy in watching the boys grow and develop their own life interests. Each showed tremendous talents. Both Steven and...