SW Oregon mining - the Turner Gold Project

Neighbors have recently become concerned about the southwest Oregon Turner Gold Project, located along the Oregon/California border about 40 miles from Grants Pass. The mine consists of 60 acres of patented mining claims, with about 265 acres of additional private land. It's being developed by the Josephine Mining Corporation.

The company briefly describes the project as:

"... a massive sulfide deposit to be mined by underground mining methods to produce concentrates of gold, copper, zinc, silver, and potentially cobalt."

Sulfide deposits are associated with acid mine drainage. The Formosa Mine Superfund Site in Douglas County is an example of an acid producing mine.


This abandoned mine was added to Environmental Protection Agency's national priorities list in 2007.  EPA's summary states:

"The acid rock drainage flowing from the mine has severely degraded 13 miles of Middle Creek and the South Fork of Middle Creek, affecting macroinvertebrates, resident fish, coastal steelhead trout, and Oregon coastal coho salmon. EPA is completing a remedial investigation and feasibility study that will lead to a final cleanup plan for the site."

See the EPA home page on the Formosa Mine Superfund Site.

Closer to home is the Queen of Bronze Mine above the community of Takilma, Oregon, east of the Turner Gold Project. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality describes the Queen of Bronze Mine as a:

"... massive sulfide deposit. Acid mine drainage generally neutralized to green malachite oxides at property edge. Copper contamination. Several underground openings ... Acid mine drainage from adits and waste rock piles. Mine includes underground workings as well as open pit mining. Likely contamination from the acid mine drainage includes copper and zinc. Site also presents physical hazards due to open pits, open adits and shafts, and extensive waste rock piles (easy public access to site). There are over 10,000 cy of tailings associated with the site. The site is located on a ridge with drainage from the mine discharging to unnamed tributary approximately 20 feet below. The tributary discharges to Khoerry Creek, which flows to Elder Creek, which dumps into the E. Fork of the Illinois River. The City of Cave Junction has a municipal surface water intake on the E fork of the Illinois R. approximately 10 miles downstream from the mine site."

Read ODEQ's Report on the Queen of Bronze Mine.