By Dianne Gouliquer
A unique prospecting course taking place in Kenora may spark new interest in mineral exploration and save the area's dwindling "prospecting fraternity," a local geologist suggests.
Peter Hinz is one of six instructors teaching Discover Prospecting, a nine-week course about minerals and rocks.
The course is a joint initiative of the Kenora Mining Group and the Lake of the Woods Business Incentive Corp.
"The prospecting fraternity is dwindling; it's not a career path that many people choose," Hinz says. "The number of full-time prospectors is dropping off, and what we're finding more and more is that the weekend prospectors are the ones who are sort of going out and doing the work. What we're trying to do is generate more part-time prospectors to keep the numbers up because every year some of the old prospectors pass away, and those numbers are dwindling. We need people out in the bush looking for mineral resources."
Hinz, who also works in Kenora's resident geologist's office, says the course is being delivered through nine three-hour sessions. It will wrap up on May 10.
Upon completion, participants will have a firm grasp of mineral and rock identification, understand staking requirements, and be knowledgeable about research techniques.
"They'll take away the ability to identify minerals and rocks in the field, and they'll gain an understanding of mineral deposits and how they're formed and what they look like," Hinz says. "They'll gain an understanding of staking requirements - how to stake out claims and how to record claims, how to research a commodity or property and how to do basic exploration and prospecting on the property."
Nearly 60 people showed an interest in the course, he notes. Only 40 spots were available.
"We actually had a waiting list of 20 people, so there's a possibility that we're going to have to look at running another course.
"We have a full age range. We have teenagers all the way up to retired people who are in their 70s. Some of them are rockhounds who just wanted to have an understanding of how to go out and look for rocks. Some are people who are going to be retiring soon and are looking for something to do. There has always been a romance with prospecting - to be able to go out in the field and hit the motherlode."
Hinz says there has not been a prospecting course in the area in nearly 10 years, and he adds, the response to this one was "overwhelming."
Lake of the Woods Business Incentive Corp. chief administrative officer Don Cameron says he considers the course to be valuable, and says the economic development group will continue to support the course if it is offered a second time.
"We'll certainly provide whatever support we can (for this course)," Cameron says. "If there is an interest for it to continue and a need for it to continue, then yes, we'll definitely be supportive.
"The mining industry has pretty good potential in this area. We have great hopes for development of the mining potential here in the pedalite and pegmatite resources that have been identified, so we would hope that the mining industry does take a bit of a burst in the next several years."
There are currently no operating mines in the area, but Cameron says the exploration and mining potential is there.
