Rocking It at Highland Valley Copper

SD83 students had an opportunity to learn more about careers in the mineral exploration and mining sector recently. For the 2nd consecutive year, SD83 and MineralsEd brought under 20 students to view Teck’s Highland Valley Copper operation located west of Logan Lake.

This year, students from Salmon Arm Secondary’s Geology 12 and Earth Science 11 classes were able to see one of the active pits where ore is removed, walk through its flotation mill to see how metals like copper and molybdenum are separated from the ore and to view the mine’s huge maintenance facility where over one-hundred heavy duty mechanics and other trades people work during the week.

Students learned that nearly 150-thousand tonnes of copper ore is extracted daily at the facility. The mine employs over 14-hundred workers within the company and another five-hundred contracted workers, many of them located across the region. These workers entered the mine primarily through four different general career paths: straight from high school, via trades training, through a certificate or diploma program or with a university degree.

Grade 12 Geology student Dean DeLeeuw says she loved the tour. She is contemplating a career as an exploration geologist and admits her view of mining changed as a result of the trip. “It is much more environmentally friendly than I had previously thought. I did not know that pine oil is used to separate minerals,” said Deleeuw.

“I didn’t realize there were self-driving dump trucks,” expressed Owen Anderson, a Grade 11 SAS student. Nearly half of Teck’s large trucks are autonomous. Anderson says he’s interested in a trade, especially welding, and thinks their might be a fit for him working on a mine site in the future.

If you have an idea for a future field trip, please contact District Career Education Coordinator George Richard at 778-824-1188 (text or phone) or you can email grichard@sd83.bc.ca.