Historic gold mining in Nova Scotia, including mining in the Moose River Gold District, has focussed on quartz-vein hosted gold deposits within the Goldenville Formation, typically associated with the limbs and hinges of anticlines. This setting is often referred to as ‘Meguma style’ gold mineralization.

In recent years the existence of disseminated gold mineralization and potential to develop large tonnage, open-pitable resources in Nova Scotia has been recognised, particularly since 1986-87 when drilling around old workings at Moose River Gold Mines intersected wide intervals of relatively low grade gold mineralization in what is now known as the Touquoy gold deposit. Since then, disseminated gold mineralization has been identified at a number of locations, spatially associated with anticlinal fold hinges. Most of that mineralization is associated with argillites or mixed greywacke-argillite units within the Goldenville Formation, including Touquoy, Beaver Dam and Fifteen Mile Stream; however, disseminated gold has also been recognised in greywacke host rocks within the Goldenville Group at North Brookfield and several other sites.

At Beaver Dam the highest gold grades are typically associated with bedding-parallel tabular quartz veins localised on the southern limb near the hinge zone of the Moose River Fifteen Mile Stream Anticline. However, the host rock material between quartz veins also carries significant gold grades. It is the quartz vein hosted ........

Mining is based on conventional open pit methods suited for the project location and local site requirements.

Mine operations are anticipated to begin at Touquoy, and move to Beaver Dam once the Touquoy pit reserves are exhausted in year 5.

B621 targets the south portion of the deposit, which contains a higher grade gold and lower strip ratio than the north portion. This phase contains about 1.5 years’ worth of mill feed and mines from the pit exit at the 130 m elevation, down to the pit bottom at the 45 m elevation. The ramp runs counter-clockwise down from the 130 m pit exit in the east of the pit and switchbacks at the 85 m bench elevation.

B622 pushes the north and east wall to the ultimate limits and extends the bottom of the pit below the first pit phase. This phase contains about 1.5 years’ worth of mill feed and mines from the pit exit at the 130 m elevation, down to the pit bottom at the -45 m elevation. The ramp runs counter-clockwise down from the 130 m pit exit in the east of the pit.

The Beaver Dam operations require an additional two excavators and one wheel loader.

The hydraulic excavators are specified to handle the bulk of excavation from the pits, including all identified mineralized zones and the waste rock in those mineralized zones. The wheel loader is specified for mining waste only areas of the pit, re-handling stockpiled material, pit clean up, road construction and snow removal. Blasted patter ........

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