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  3. Mineral Resource Data System (MRDS)

Buena Vista

Plant in San Luis Obispo county in California, United States with commodity Mercury
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Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Public Land Survey System information
  6. Commodities
  7. Nearby scientific data
  8. Ore body information
  9. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  10. Mineral rights holdings
  11. Land status
  12. Ownership information
  13. Reserves and resources
  14. Workings at the site
  15. Links to other databases
  16. Bibliographic references
  17. General comments
  18. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10262501
MRDS ID W024999
MAS/MILS ID 0060790075
Record type Site
Current site name Buena Vista
Alternate or previous names Mahoney Mine, Gould
Related records 10077393

Geographic coordinates

Point of reference Main Entrance
Geographic coordinates: -120.89628, 35.62276 (WGS84)
Elevation 372
Location accuracy 500(meters)

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

San Luis Obispo(county)

California(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Cypress Mountain(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Paso Robles(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

San Luis Obispo(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Salinas(hydrologic unit)

Central California Coastal(hydrologic accounting unit)

Central California Coastal(hydrologic subregion)

California(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States California San Luis Obispo

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Mount Diablo 026 S 010 E 33 SE California

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Mercury Primary

Nearby scientific data

Main Entrance (1) -120.89628, 35.62276
ListMap

Economic information

Ore body information

  • Depth to top 0M
    Field Value
    MAS Matrix # 1
    MAS Column # 1
    Type of Orebody #1 SHEAR ZONE
    Shape of Orebody #1 IRREGULAR
    Primary mode of Origin HYDROTHERMAL
    Primary Ore Control FRACTURING
    Secondary Ore Control FAULTING
    Degree of Wallrock Alter. UNKNOWN
    Date of Last Modification 830316

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Surface-Underground
Development status Plant
Commodity type Metallic
Significant No
Plant subcategory Flotation

Mineral rights holdings

Type of mineral rights Patented
Type of mineral rights Located Claim

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Harold J. Biaggini
    Home office California
    Year 1981

Reserves and resources

  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1955
    Inferred 30800mt ore
    Total resources 30800mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Mercury Hg 0.3549 wt-pct Mercury Major 1955

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Length 704M
    Overall depth 140M
    Field Value
    MAS Development Schedule # 1
    Mining Record # 1
    Status of Mining Method PROPOSED
    Mining Method OVERHAND SQUARE-SET 10-46A
    Percent Waste Rock 10
    Percent Recovery 100
    Hardness of Rock UNKNOWN
    Rock Characteristics UNKNOWN
    Rock Support Chars. SUPPORTING
    Mine Support Chars. CAN'T SUPPORT FILL OR CAVE
    Number of Shafts 1
    Avg. Length of Adits (m) 244
    Number of Adits 1
    1st Condition of Workings PLUGGED
    Capacity 45
    Capacity Units MT ORE/DAY
    Unit Production Cost 63.26
    Units of Production $/MT ORE
    Operating Days per Year 250
    Operating Shifts per Day 2
    Year of Information 1981

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    CALIFORNIA REGIONAL WATER QUALITY CONTROL BOARD, CENTRAL

  • Deposit

    COAST REGION. SURFACE WATER DEGRADATION BY INACTIVE

  • Deposit

    METAL MINES IN NORTHWEST SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY, CA,

  • Deposit

    DECEMBER 1993 (P. 8-10).

  • Deposit

    CALIF. STATE MINING BUR. REPORT 15, 1915, P. 712.

  • Deposit

    CALIF. JOUR. MINES AND GEOL., V. 35, 1939, P. 439.

  • Deposit

    U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 922-R, 1941, P. 548-549, 559-560.

  • Deposit

    U.S. BUREAU OF MINES IC 8252, 1965, P. 196.

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Environmental Factors THE LAS TABLAS CREEK MINES, PARTICULARLY THE BUENA VISTA AND KLAU MINES, ARE ACID MINE DRAINAGE PRODUCERS. IN INVESTIGATIONS INDEPENDENT OF THIS STUDY, NICKEL AND OCCASSIONALLY THALLIUM HAVE BEEN DETECTED AT CONCENTRATIONS NEAR AND ABOVE HAZARDOUS WASTE LEVELS IN WATER DISCHARGE FROM THE BUENA VISTA MINE. BUENA VISTA MINE DISCHARGE WATER AND SEDIMENT WERE SAMPLES IN 1986. IN WATER, ELEVATED ELEMENTS APPARENTLY ASSOCIATED WITH MINING ACTIVITY OR MINERALIZED ZONES INCLUDE ARSENIC, CADMIUM, CHROMIUM, COPPER, BERYLLIUM, IRON, NICKEL, SILVER, ZINC, SODIUM, MAGNESIUM, SULFATE, CHLORIDES, AND POSSIBLY CALCIUM. DISCHARGE WATER PH WAS LOW. SEDIMENTS CONTAINED THE FOLLOWING METALS ABOVE WATERSHED MEANS: ARSENIC, IRON, MERCURY, AND POSSIBLY BERYLLIUM, CADMIUM, LEAD, SILVER AND ZINC.
Deposit ORE MINED AND MILLED ON SITE RETORTED AT MCDERMITT NV MERCURY SHIPPED TO NEW YORK A 15 PERCENT CONTINGENCY IS ADDED TO MINE CAPITAL AND OP COSTS BECAUSE SCRAPERS HAVE OCCASIONALLY BEEN REQUIRED

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 23-NOV-1994 Ridenour, James U.S. Bureau of Mines

Beyond USGS

Supplemental information added by qvyshift.com. Not part of the original USGS MRDS record.

Maps centered on this site

Authoritative California resources

These are landing pages for further research — the state agencies don't currently expose per-mine deep links.