turbidity blanket

omnicron · Nov 13, 2013

Could this be the solution to the bans on dredging? What I see is this could be put just down stream of a dredge. Wouldn't that solve what the bans about?

Oakview2 · Nov 14, 2013

If you address turbity, the eco terrorist will scream MERCURY, if you address mercury, they will scream SALMONOIDS. This is a shell game of the most disingenious sort. Ca is the perfect example of backdoor politics, eco corruption, all in the name of PROPOSED HARM. Not one shread of scientific evidence to the detriment of underwater mining. Hell we have 2 EIR studies by Fish and Shame, the very agency opposing us in the current dredge cases, that say we are we NOT detrimental, but beneficial to salmonids.

This is about control. About a bunch of elitisit in SF who think they are the smartest in the room, and even though they spend no time in the woods, they think only they can save the day. They are flush with cash, they have plenty of dirty politicians in their hip pocket. They will stoop to any low to achieve their goal , because if you have NO morals, the ends will always justify the means.

One example before I fall of my soapox. Lake Combie is a containment lake on the Bear river. It was built to contain silt and mercury from the old hydro projects up river. Nevada irrigation district has hydroelectric generation at the dam. Groups like the Sierra Fund sued NID when they tried to dredge out the silt in the lake. It has built up so much silt that it has diminished their capacity to store water and generated electricity. It has built up so much in spots that you can no longer go from one end of the lake to the other. The Sierra fund puts up a shell company, that allows them to dredge the lake with a cutter head dredge under the guise of mercury remediation, they will process all gravels to a plant for sale, keep the gold they find, recieve a 10 million dollar contract and all without any guarantees of how much mercury they will recover. This is extortion at the highest levels and should be prosecuted by ALL involved. Trying to recover mercury with a cutter head dredge is akin to trying to pick up a raw egg with a chainsaw COLOR ME PISSED AGAIN.

Hoser John · Nov 14, 2013

A good curtain will let you to keep dredging in low water flows for hours on end. Even in rain runoff too when ya downsize to a 2 1/2" or so. This flow was the worst I'd ever mined, but good for 2 hours or so,then wait a half hour and good to go again-John :skullflag:

omnicron · Nov 14, 2013

I found some blankets that are good in high flow water
Turbidity Barriers & Curtains - Layfield Group
Type 3 turbidity curtains should be used in areas where considerable current (up to 3 knots or 5 feet per second) may be present, where tidal action may be present, and/or where the curtain is potentially subject to wind and wave action. A woven polypropylene monofilament fabric screen is sewn to the body fabric to offset any hydrodynamic forces acting on the curtain.
Layfield supplies standard floating turbidity curtains in three different constructions. They are referred to as Type 1 , Type 2 and Type 3 as per the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers (USACE) specifications
I found others that say they are epa approved.

Oak, if these blankets are stopping silt, they will also stop mercury.

I'm wondering if this ban isn't being fought in the wrong way. Maybe the two sides should try to work together to come up with a solution that would be beneficial to both. Honesty, I would rather have to use a blanket and maybe change how I dredged rather then not dredge at all.

Food for thought...
BTW I'm on the side of dredging but if faced with this, I would be willing to do almost anything to keep dredging.

Oakview2 · Nov 14, 2013

They have no interest in working on any solutions, they just want to dictate to the non ruling class what we can do or not do

mxer47 · Nov 14, 2013

My uncle use to say-the government doesn't look for solutions only control. The proposed use of these would only be seen as an admission that we are harming the environment, then be used against us.

Fullpan · Nov 14, 2013

For your personal situation omnicron, the more you do lessen your noise impact and silt/sediment plume, the better. "flying under the radar" is name of the game right now in all western states. Camo is helpful too.

Oakview2 · Nov 14, 2013

I hope your state and county government will rise up against all the proposed EPA tyranny proposed.

omnicron · Nov 14, 2013

2 years I've been flying under the radar...this next season I will be also part of the time...I've found something that looks promising... Its just closed to dredging...but out of sight is out of mind! For 3 months I'll be legitimate though...

There's also the possibility we could move to Alaska or Colorado... I'm kind of hoping for Alaska...my wife told me the other day that she supports my mining dreams and is willing to move for my dream. I mentioned to her about moving back to the Philippines and taking my dredge...as far as I can tell most of the gold bearing rivers are not being actively dredged. She didn't go for that idea lol.

Honestly guys, how much money has been spent by all sides involved...plus what a already bankrupt state spent on this ban. It could go on for years more, only to end with a big loss. To me I would rather try to negotiate a compromise and pick battles you have a chance to win. I'm not saying this battle can't be won...

omnicron · Nov 14, 2013

Oakview2 said:
I hope your state and county government will rise up against all the proposed EPA tyranny proposed.

The epa already has their foot in the door here in Idaho. You can't dredge till you get a permit from both state and epa. They already have closed some water ways that were open...

Oakview2 · Nov 14, 2013

They have all the money in the world from their sue and settle tactics, all the corrupt politicians, and more bad science that money can buy. All we have is the truth and a belief that justice wil prevail :dontknow:

Hoser John · Nov 15, 2013

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMEN fellow miners OV/RS,preaching to the already believing choir. Please note that wonderful camo job in my pic on my once proud dredge--all 5 of'm now. Once a proud tribe ,now a decimated few scattered about and fastly being regulated outta biz. Any blanket is a good downstream turbidity screen,multiple 30' apart even better. Add camo and DON'T FORGET them righteous "low tone mufflers" from briggs as sooooooooo quiet. I bought the most expensive and low low low as ya can go and you can still hook up your water heater to it also. John

omnicron · Nov 15, 2013

For the ultimate in a quite running dredge, use a car muffler, I wonder what camo paint on a dredge in the water would look like from the air. I think the Forest Service uses planes here to direct ground personnel...but that could just paranoia on my part! LOL

Alright guys, I'm not wanting to appear like I'm on the darkside but I think that's how it's looking. If I lived in cali (I did for 13 years, a little town called Olivehurst, just a few miles from Marysville/Yuba City) I would be out dredging no matter what laws were passed. I'll do the same in Idaho or were ever I end up. It's my right as a citizen of the US to mine. But at the same time I would also be trying to find other solutions.

Fullpan · Nov 15, 2013

Olivehurst was decimated in the 1986 ? flood - there was a popular shopping mall there, never fully recovered. Its a shame that the legislature didn't have the foresight to place a moratorium on flooding before that disaster !! :tongue3:

Side note: For weeks after that flood, nice pickers of gold could be found exposed on bedrock in the South Fork Yuba river

Hoser John · Nov 16, 2013

Cal-Fire Had choppers MANY times exactly over that one in pic and no problems what so ever. John

omnicron · Nov 16, 2013

Fullpan said:
Olivehurst was decimated in the 1986 ? flood - there was a popular shopping mall there, never fully recovered. Its a shame that the legislature didn't have the foresight to place a moratorium on flooding before that disaster !!

Side note: For weeks after that flood, nice pickers of gold could be found exposed on bedrock in the South Fork Yuba river

That was 3 years after I moved! I remember crossing the river into Marysville from Olivehurst, there was this big machine down on the river, I didn't know what it was then but now I know it was a bucket line dredge.