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Glenn Springs Holdings is continuing the effort to remove contaminated material and capture contaminated water runoff, sending it to the North Potato Creek treatment plant while letting clean water follow its natural course. Key projects this year include finishing up the cleanup at London Mill Flotation Plant, grassing the McPherson Branch area and Roastyard, and completing slag removal and grassing the Isabella Processing Plant and Mine area. Glenn Springs will be offering van tours of the reclaimed areas for four days in early July.

London Mill

Mining began in this area in 1853, with a flotation plant used to separate out the iron, copper and zinc in operation until the mines closed in 1987. More than 22,000 truckloads of material have been removed and most of the mill structure has been torn down; some remnants will remain for historical interpretation. The area that was once home to office buildings, the mill, and ore bins is now covered with 12 species of grasses, crabapple, sawtooth oak and dogwood trees. Frank Russell said the plantings are designed to provide food for wildlife, noting they have already seen deer and geese in the area. It will eventually be open to the public with hiking trails and interpretive signs.

GSH is now in the process of closing out an old tailings/concentrate pile that was used  to store various types of waste material and concentrates that were used in production. The ten-acre site will be capped with a heavy plastic liner, covered with soil and planted with grass. A dam will be built downstream at the site of an old “crib dam” to catch water runoff and send it via a pipeline to the treatment plant.

The London Mill treatment plant is gradually being phased out and water is being sent for treatment to the new North Potato Creek plant.

McPherson

For Phase II, the McPherson Branch Area will be shaped to establish drainage and add limestone to reduce acidity, then covered with soil and grass. The area had been covered with waste rock and was eroding away, degrading water quality in the branch.

The McPherson Roast Yard was used in the mid 1800s for open roasting of ore. Several thousand cubic yards of roaster waste have been removed and four cascading sediment basins will be built to settle out the solids that are eroded from the area below the Ducktown Basin Museum.

Contractors working in the roast yard area have uncovered artifacts of the early operations, including a brick flue that was apparently part of the roaster, an old gear, pipes, and chunks of waste material from the original pots. Russell said the workers are good about trying to preserve historic material that is found. Some of the material has been taken to the museum for display and interpretation.

Some areas around McPherson have already been grassed, limestone seeps were added, and the creek was rerouted so it would meander.

Isabella

Mining began in this area in 1853, with a flotation and processing plant build by Ducktown Sulfur, Copper and Iron after the turn of the century. GSH has removed most of the slag and waste, with 85% of the area down to original ground after removal of 10-12 feet to topsoil. Russell said they have found two levels of foundations in the area. Plans are to cap the majority of the disposal area with Geo Clay Liner and possibly built a new streambed and relocate Ellis Creek.

Pictured: Workers removing contaminated soil from the site of the McPherson roast yard uncovered a brick flue that was probably part of the roaster.

In gallery:

A wooden “crib dam” built around 1924 will be replaced to capture contaminated runoff and pipe it to the treatment plant.

Excavation in Isabella is removing 10-12 feet of contaminated soil. The area will be covered with a liner, with soil placed on top and grassed.

Only a few building remnants, preserved for historic interpretation, remain at the once-busy London Mill process plant. Tall grass surrounds the area once filled with contaminants.

Runoff from the London Mill area is being captured and will be sent to the North Potato Creek treatment plant.

Frank Russell, local manager for Glenn Springs Holdings, is surrounded by grass at London Mill, where removal of contaminants is nearly complete.